The Finance Committee of the Mississippi County Quorum Court is weighing the use of county economic development funds for a proposed ambulatory care clinic in Manila, being developed by St. Bernards Healthcare.
After a lengthy discussion by its members Tuesday, the committee opted to extend its Tuesday meeting to 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 26, at the Greater Blytheville Area Chamber of Commerce.
The proposal by Cliff Chitwood, Mississippi County's Economic Developer, calls for the county to give $750,000 to St. Bernards in exchange for the creation of 75 new jobs in the county. Those 75 new hires would staff the clinic, which Chitwood hopes will be located in Manila, and would assumedly provide outpatient care services to the area.
St. Bernards has plans and funds set aside for the building of a new clinic either in Monette or Manila, and are awaiting the decision of the Quorum Court about the funds to make their decision.
According to Dr. Tommy Wagner of Manila, who was present at the meeting and is proposed to head the medical staff at the new clinic, the facility will be built in Mississippi County at Manila if the funds are approved, but will be taken across the county line into Monette if they are not.
"It is my strong belief that it is better to have this institution in Mississippi County than to not," Chitwood told the committee. "I think this is positive. The nature of competition is that it makes everyone who competes better. The county has to compete for industry, and it makes us better. This is going to happen -- we're just arguing over a distance of 5 or 6 miles."
The committee also heard statements from representatives of the Mississippi County Hospital System about the possible negative impact such a new facility would have on the hospitals in Blytheville and Osceola.
In its Monday meeting, the Board of Governors for the hospital system authorized John Logan to speak for both facilities at the committee meeting. Logan asked the committee to table its discussion of the issue for one week, so that Great River Medical Center and South Mississippi County Regional Medical Center can compile additional information on the financial impact this facility will have on the hospital system.
"This only came to our attention last Friday," said Logan, "and the board of MCHS is asking the committee to postpone their decision until we can gather more information. The hospitals are obviously concerned about losing patients and employees."
Logan went on to state that since March of 2009, the hospitals of Mississippi County have treated 4,000 patients who live in Dell, Manila or Leachville, and that the amount of money generated by such care is significant to a small hospital system. The worry of local hospitals is that doctors working for a St. Bernards clinic would refer most or all of their patients who required hospital stays back to Jonesboro instead of Blytheville, in addition to the loss of revenue from outpatient procedures. Logan also referred to the possibility of a future sale or lease of the hospital system by a third party being damaged by the new clinic's proximity.
"A third party company would stop and take a much closer look at this system if there is a third and competing facility in the county," he said.
Members of the committee were divided on the issue. Justice Michael White spoke in favor of voting the issue through to recommendation for the full Quorum Court, saying that he felt the patient base reached in the west area of Mississippi County would not negatively affect business in the Blytheville and Osceola area.
"We're not trying to take away from this hospital system," he said. "Patients here won't leave their doctors. We're enhancing the health care system in Mississippi County. If we delay for too long, we're going to miss this opportunity."
White also pointed out that of the nearly $25 million generated in economic development funds by the sales tax, none of it has been spent in the Manila area.
Committee members Hattie Middlebrook and Emmanuel Lofton, however, both spoke in favor of caution and careful consideration of the issue, expressing that the committee needed to give the hospital time to gather more information, and committee members time to consider the full ramifications of their decision.
After hearing a statement by MCHS CEO Ralph Beaty, in which he explained that 70 percent of the hospital system's revenue comes from outpatient care which could possibly be lost to the new facility, Middlebrook moved that the board extend its meeting.
"There is no way I can make a decision on this today," she said. "We want to do everything we can to support our local hospitals. We just need more time."
The committee voted to extend its meeting to Tuesday afternoon, preceding the regularly scheduled Quorum Court meeting Tuesday evening. At that time, both representatives from MCHS and St. Bernards will be invited to present their cases to the committee. When a decision is reached about the board's recommendation, a special meeting of the Court will be called.
sharris@blythevillecourier.com