Should Marengo county pay the bill left by folks who can't pay it at the hospital?
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I voted yes to this pole, but for only a couple of reasons, and with certain stipulations. I think the county should step in and assist in getting our excuse of a hospital back on its feet. But, the county should not be paying bills for those who have know reason for not paying the bill themselves! I really don’t think that all of the bills that need to be paid are from people that don’t have a dime to their name. In fact, I would be willing to bet that a good sum of the bills are for patients that have more than enough money to pay their bill, they just see that many other people aren't and feel that they can get away with it too! The hospital needs to open its books and let the county see who owes what before a dime is issued to them. It's kind of like you going to your parents, asking for $10,000, and refusing to tell them what it is for! If the bills are weeded down to only those that truly need assistance with their bills, then the county should help. If the hospital gets "back on its feet" then maybe when can get descent healthcare back in Marengo County. But it is also my opinion, that if the citizens of Marengo county are going to help pay for the Hospital, then the citizens have the right to have some sort of say so in who runs the hospital!
Good point, Jeff!!! I think that if the administration would change, then a lot of changes would be seen in that place!!! Wake up Tombigbee Healthcare Authority and the City of Demopolis!
Here's the article that's stirring up the storm between Nabors and Tucker. CLICK HERE By what Nabors put out as the budget as of October this year, even after ALL uncompensated bills are paid, indigent and deliquent, the Hospital is still in the hole $40,000. This is after paying the lowest wages for nurses practically anywhere and undermanning the shifts. The fact is, Nabors is failing to turn a profit there and is looking anywhere he can to get more money. I'm still leaning towards a sales tax, simply because it will get that monkey off the County's back, and give Nabors no more excuses as to why the Hospital doesn't generate the revenue it should.
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As a former employee of the "Whitfield", I can say that the lack of
resources from the hospital comes from a long history of not trying to collect bills. I have heard hundreds of people say that they came to the Emergency Room for a cold,rash etc. because you don't have to pay at the hospital. If they went to the Doctor's office they must pay to be seen.
I do not think that the sales tax should be passed as long as
Charles Nabors and his group of administration are at the hospital. The only thing more money would do for them is to pad pockets or build another building for Mr. Nabors to say "look what I have done". The working people (the stregnth) of the hospital would never see a penny of this money. The hospital hires new graduate RNs at a higher payrate than the faithful people who have worked there for 5-10 years and have experience. All of the experienced RNs who can leave this area have taken jobs at "real" hospitals where they are making around $10.00 more per hour.
As for the board of directors of the hospital, I believe most of the members are misled by Mr. Nabors. Not all information is given to them at meetings, Just enough to get the approval that he desires. Have you wondered what Mr. Nabors is hiding in the books? If we get rid of Mr. Nabors and get an administrator with a good business sense and who is fair, then the tax should be passed. Strict guidelines should be in place on real indigent care vs. people who want a free ride.
I agree completely. If the guy has put the hospital in the ground this much then he needs to go! We need new administration, more doctors, more specialists....... But no one in their right mind who is worth a damn will come here because of the state of the hospital. Mabey if we get new management with promise then we can better professionals working there. With more pro's then the hospital can take care of more patients in stead of taking everyone with anything more than the FLU to Tuscaloosa!! If there are more patients then tere will be more money, for better pay, which causes more incentive for more profesionals, so on and so forth. NEW ADMINISTRATION!
If a tax increase is passed to pay that place, I will do my business elsewhere as much as possible!!!! I think alot of people would probably agree with me.
Don't get me wrong, Demopolis NEEDS a hospital! It needs BWWMH, but it surely needs an administration that knows what is going on, and will attend to problems (patient and staff).
Mr. Nabors, he has a very good vocabulary. I learned more "BIG" words while working at BWWMH than I did my whole 12 years in school!!!
I remember when Livingston had a nice big hospital... It's just an old eye sore of a building now. The people of Livingston did'nt want to support their facility either so they chose to let Rush Hospital purchase it. Now it's a small clinic and the rest of the building is just wasting away. I think people need to stop believing everything they read in the newspaper that is written by disgruntled employees and do a little research for themselves to formulate thier own decision. The employees of the hospital do not want their salaries published - so what - do you want yours made public? I get so frustrated with all of this bashing the hospital takes. It is a quality facility with good services and we are fortunate to have it. If the citizens of this county let the hospital fold then they are dumber than I thought. Bottom line is - the county has a legal responsibility to pay for care of it's poor and they need to devise a method for indigent certification and payment.
The hospital is a private organization though.... Right? I am for the county helping the hospital, but as a citizen I feel like I should be protected so my money doesn't go to pay some bill that could have been paid by the person it belongs too! And about the salaries of the employees.... The salaries of the administration should be made public when you have nurses making less than some high school kids with summer jobs! Nurses have one of the hardest jobs out there in my opinion and should be well paid for their work. But apparently that work isn't very important to the administration. If the administration was half as underpaid as the nurses at that hospital, do you think they would be so shy about fessing up their earnings? Not to mention, tax dollars alone will not pull the hospital out of debt. With the hospital in the shape that it is in, how can you really argue that it is being managed adequately? I mean the buildings look great, but what use are they if you can’t get care in them?
DO YOU REALLY BELIEVE???... that all of the rural hospitals throughout our state and across the country that have closed over the past 10 years have been a result of poor management?? The fact is that reimbursement for the government programs has not kept pace with rising costs - ESPECIALLY for rural facilities such as ours. By the way - exactly how much do the nurses here make compared to DCH or RUSH. Is it comparable with living costs? Would it be worth the drive for these nurses to commute? Does the shift differential make up the difference here?
Well, as far as working for DCH or some of the others, there are many nurses you can ask who travel from Demopolis to Tuscaloosa and Selma because of the pay and benefits difference. Is it fair for an individual to go to school, become a very knowledgable healthcare professional, only to work for around 7 bucks an hour? I make more than that tutoring math...and I dont have a degree yet! I think it is a joke that the hospital continues to build buildings rather raise wages and hire more nurses. The nursing staff is running scarce. I personally would rather have a nurse that hasn't worked double shifts all week, and is a little ticked after looking at that last paycheck attending to me!
AMEN Brother - now let's make sure the county fulfills it's legal responsibility so the hospital can continue to grow and serve the residents of this area. The solution is not going to be found through slander and rumor. It will be found through compromise and accountability. However, the hospital needs us and you too Jeff, to be on it's side on this issue.
