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State will not hold hospital hearing
By JEFFREY S. SOLOCHEK
© St. Petersburg Times, BROOKSVILLE -- Its county approval firmly in hand, Hernando HealthCare has formally asked state regulators for the right to rebuild and relocate Brooksville Regional Hospital. Unlike the Hernando County Commission, which gave residents several opportunities to talk about the matter, the state Agency for Health Care Administration will not have any public hearings. "We did not receive a request," agency spokesman Bruce Middlebrooks said. Any interested party could have asked for a hearing, which had been scheduled tentatively for Tuesday. Middlebrooks said he had expected someone from rival Oak Hill Hospital to make the call before the Oct. 12 deadline, because Oak Hill chief executive Jaime Wesolowski has spoken forcefully and frequently against the move. Wesolowski has not changed his tune. He sent the agency a two-page, single-spaced letter detailing his three main reasons for opposing the new Brooksville Regional site at State Road 50 and Lykes Dublin Road, west of Brooksville. "We just made a decision not to request a public hearing," he explained. The local community has dealt with the proposal for months, Wesolowski said, and people are tired of the arguments. All the emotions and personal opinions have gotten a full airing, he added, and nothing new would come from another session. "Our opposition is better supported by facts," he said. Hernando HealthCare chief executive office Tom Barb said he thought the lack of a hearing was positive for the community. "I'm excited the local confrontations are over," said Barb, who consistently argued that the discussions are best suited to the state proceedings. So far, Wesolowski's letter is the only negative item in the file, Middlebrooks said. Hernando HealthCare submitted three volumes of documents on its behalf. It included dozens of support letters from several physicians and county residents with its application. Many were signed form letters, including several duplicate signatures. County commissioners did not send anything. Commission Chairman Chris Kingsley said the county's approved contract amendment with Hernando HealthCare should be enough. County Administrator Paul McIntosh said the deal, backed by all five commissioners, is almost through the lawyers and to the state. The county owns Brooksville Regional Hospital. In its application, Hernando HealthCare revealed some previously unknown details about the planned new hospital. The application shows the final project would include 181,844 square feet and would cost $52,066,855. Without legal delays, the new building would open on or about Oct. 1, 2004. Barb said he expected the state to approve the proposal, and he also figured Oak Hill would challenge that approval to the Division of Administrative Hearings and, if necessary, in civil court. If the company withstands the opposition, he said, groundbreaking would take place about January 2003. Any delay would be minimal, he said. Completion of the new hospital would bolster the hospital's sagging financial bottom line, according to the application. In the first year of operation, the hospital projects a profit of $1,017,182, compared to $579,393 if the hospital remains in Brooksville. The profits would increase the second year, according to the company's filing. All this information came wrapped in a positive spin that emphasized the move's short distance ("only three miles") and the independent consultant analysis that gave credence to the proposal. The application included the analysis, paid for by the County Commission, a travel study and excerpts from six recent state approvals of hospital relocations. Hernando HealthCare argued that its situation with Brooksville Regional is similar to each of those examples. That might be, Middlebrooks said, but "each of these has its own particular merits or special circumstances." He said the agency will verify all the data provided and do its own research before making its ruling. Hernando HealthCare also tried to downplay any opposition. "Notably, while HCA Oak Hill Hospital has publicly opposed the relocation of (Brooksville Regional) to the specific site described in this application, Oak Hill -- including its administrator, Jaime Wesolowski -- has publicly acknowledged that the hospital needs to be replaced!" the company states in the application, highlighting the point with underlined words. The company took issue with Oak Hill's oft-stated claim that Oak Hill would lose up to 25 percent of its business if the move occurs and that none of the county's hospitals would be large enough to attract high-level services such as open-heart surgery. In fact, Hernando HealthCare contends, the county's population will grow large enough to benefit each hospital with patient increases. It positions itself and its customers as the losers if the state disapproves the relocation: "Failure to approve this project will require (Brooksville Regional) to serve patients in a facility that is outmoded for current medical practice." Hernando HealthCare, a subsidiary of Naples-based Health Management Associates, operates Brooksville Regional, Spring Hill Regional Hospital and PineBrook Regional Medical Center for the county. It took the hospitals out of bankruptcy in 1998. The state agency is scheduled to issue its opinion on the move in mid-December. -- Staff writer Jeffrey S. Solochek covers Hernando County government and can be reached at 754-6115. Send e-mail to solochek@sptimes.com.
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