The public hearing on the proposed surgical center drew a large crowd for what appeared to be a well-choreographed showing of opposition to the facility.
Cliff Corbett, president and CEO of Morris Hospital, was quoted as saying "the proposed surgical center poses a serious threat to the services that Morris Hospital provides, which includes maintaining the hospital's staff levels." Opponents claim that the surgical center would take away about 60 percent of the hospital's outpatient surgery. (Doesn't the Hospital provide other services besides outpatient surgery? How does Morris Hospital manage to survive the surgical center already operating in Morris?)
Mr. Corbett is also quoted in the Herald as saying that "notions of fair competition between the hospital and the proposed center are like comparing apples to oranges.“Real competition only takes place on a level playing field ...” Corbett said. “That is clearly not the case here.”
I agree with Mr. Corbett on that point. It is not a level playing field. The Hospital, a not for profit entity, has a huge advantage over the surgical center in that it does not pay income taxes and property taxes. In contrast, the proposed surgical center, a for-profit entity, will be paying income taxes and generating property tax revenue for Channahon.
Oh, and won't the surgical center produce new jobs?
But what really caught my attention is one other quote from Mr. Corbett, "the hospital would work with Channahon, but not Pliura." Why not? What is really playing out behind the scenes? Is there any truth to the rumors that power struggles and personality clashes are the driving force behind the hospital's opposition to the surgical center?
46 comments:
There are no thinly veiled threats from Corbett. There are explicit open threats of job losses to employees, causing anxiety and anguish. How dirty.
I appreciate the picture of Chicken Little. The sky is falling.
And if the surgicenter is stopped a promise a chicken in every pot, better yet make that a ham for every employee at Christmas.
Wait a minute. Corbett does not want a surgicenter in Channahon now but if given a chance he will build his own or retrofit the Silver Cross Building? Yep that makes sense to me. Does he expect the same physicians that he is voicing concern over now come work for him if he runs the facility. Right now I am taking my toys home and you guys can't play with them.
Great picture of the CEO.
Is surgicenter location on Bell Rd and Rte 6, across the street from Grundy Co. the result of hospital pressure on the county? Is the county in favor of business and expanding tax base? I don't know but I think we should know.
Wait till people learn more about Dr. Tom Pliura. I heard that hospital representatives referred to him as Pliura or Mr. Pliura in a derogatory fashion at the meeting. Dr. Pliura is the son of a good old fashioned doctor who made frequent house calls. I understand Dr. Pliura accompanied him at times. He may be too modest to say it, but I daresay that his upbringing instilled an energy, ambition, and ethic in him. He is a fully trained, competent ER physician who would be a credit to any hospital's medical staff. He has DONATED his time to various activities in his downstate Illinois community, including FREE physicals to high school athletes (not these "discount" things we sometimes see around here).
As if that wasn't enough, he somehow had time to earn a law degree. He has been active in patient's and doctor's rights issues. He spearheaded a campaign to try to save a bankrupt hospital. He's been involved in class action suits against big insurance companies, on behalf of patients and doctors, I understand. He's a unique individual. Why don't you Google "Thomas Pliura" to see what you can find out on your own?
And yes, he has honed a skill at helping local doctors develop needed first class surgicenters, in communities that welcome them.
His story would make an interesting article in a local paper (probably Joliet herald, as MDH wouldn't print it).
What is the deal with Mayors Kopczick and Micetich speaking out in opposition of the surgical center? Did either city council vote on this or even discuss it? They do not speak for me. I want to make my own health care choices.
how much would morris and county gain if hospital lost its tax exempt status?
Boy, is mayor, scooter, senreq and myron brick happy that hospital stepped in it!
has hospital shot its wad with the "greedy doctor" and "stitch n go" campaign?
Can anyone explain why a Fire Chief (Coal City) would want to stick politics into his bag of tricks? The mans reasoning at the podium was just plain stupid. "I drove the ambulance to the Morris hospital for over thirty years." Therefore he must know nothing else will work? Dah, there is a difference between an emergency room and a surgical center. A public employee that was just secretly given a 3 year contract for $60K a year coming from taxpayers should keep his nose out of politics, period! Your chief hands out keys to the truck for joy rides, ours is now a paid lobbyist.
Seems like a lot of managers at hosp. and a few public officials are drinking the hospital Kool-aid.
Yes it is power struggles and self determination that is being played out. The hospital is afraid that the status quo is changing and their coveted positions are in danger. If DR.PLIURA is a menace to Morris hospital the question is why? Because the physicians are united and organized by Dr. Pliura. Because he helps physicians and patients when you look at his past dealings on any web search. Because some one from out of their good old boy network is involved and there is nothing that MH will be able to pilfer or plunder. No friends will own the building or lease the land. How can you have a personality clash when you never met the man? Is it the possibility that someone can do your job more efficiently? We will work with Channahon, Mr. Cook expressed the fact the Morris hospital abandoned the town 2 years ago. Now that someone else is interested, MH is interested. "Me thinks he protests to loudly."
Stop picking on the massage parlor.
If the no-profit thing rears it's ugly head lets look at it logically. The charitible contribution by the private sector far outwights that done by non for profit. In the past few years numerous hospitals were investigated for overcharging those without health insurance and discounts were given to big insurance companies. The tax exempt status plays a role for certain institutions who practice what they preach, but not those who parlay it into a free pass card. The amount of charity work provided by all of the major hospitals in the area was abysmal.
I started picking only after I left the massage parlor.
Please, Sledge, post something about the GE cancer plant proposal. This is not a good thing for our communities, our area, our aquafer, etc. The mayors of Morris and CC have endorsed this horror even though the people spoke twenty some years ago and fought really hard to defeat this same thing! Help! Let's get the discussion going! The blogs are the discussion in all the coffee shops, water coolers, and backyard fences throughout the county. Keep up the good work. Discussion of opinions is what we need. Thanks.
Doesn't Morris Hospital have an interest in the Rezin Center...I mean the OUT PATIENT SURGICAL CENTER...What is the difference??? I say let them build the center...
The sky is falling! We are all doomed if this surgical center is aproved. The hospital will be bankrupt. All hospital employees will lose their jobs. The city of Morris will whither away and blow away like dust in the wind.
By Golly! The mayor does not speak for me. I want the right to choose where I get my healthcare.
MH won't work with Dr. Pliura because he is not their hand-picked crony.
Everyone from north of the river get your visa to come south to coal city and cry the blues that Morris is losing a hospital. The Riverside Hospital in KKK just purchased ten acres to build an emergency outpatient center. Price tag is $11 million. Now what will the fire chief say? Diamond Mayor told them since no taxes, go to Coal City. Coal City Mayor scratching his you know what, he just pounced on Channahon. Joe Cook says he is going to hire buses and return the favor.
I love the chicken little pic.
sledge, i'm having problems with rectal bleeding because of this issue can you suggest a surgical center to help me out.
Morris officials are warming up the firetruck and packing the cooler to drive over to Coal City and protest the Riverside Hospital facility.
Coal City, hell wher got enough beer to protest the Mayo Clinic.
Okay, it's been one week and Moris Hospital is still standing and the city of Morris is not a ghost town. Just look at the results of the mass hysteria produced last week.
1. You got a group of employees frightened to a point where they think they will all loose their jobs.
2. You angered a neighboring town and residents, that even if you are successful in stopping the surgicenter, the resentment will have a fall out on the support of Morris Hospital in the future.
3.You discovered that the population of Channahon is approaching the size of Morris and is still rapidly growing. They might open up their own hospital since the population dictates it. Look at Bolingbrook and Plainfield,
4. You drew attention to your hospital that regardless of the outcome does not endear you to the residents. Your a bully to employees, not a friend of small business and don't believe in competition.
4. We learned of patronage and cronism that exists in a non-for-profit. Glad to see my tax dollars at work.
Is there a right way to approach this issue yes? Did you take the high road? No.
Don't bring your dirty laundry out in the public. No one wants to see it.
and kopczick managed to embarass our city again
Batting a thousand Morris Hospital. Micetich lost in Coal City and Joe Cook won in Channahhon. I bet that Kopczick is glad that he was not in an election this time around. Too bad the administrators at Morris Hospital are not elected.
Which is it, Morris Hospital. Are you going to continue to treat physicians as "units of economic production", with no say in affairs? Are you going to stab them in the back or double cross them the moment it seems like the expedient and profitable thing to do? OR do you want to work with your staff, and cut out the dishonesty, trickery, double crossing? With Riverside coming in to Coal City, YOU ARE NOT GOING TO HAVE IT BOTH WAYS.
you can only buy so many friends, administration, before you drain your accounts dry.
A couple of the three stooges are glad they were off the ballot this time around. And how about that 101 race, my faith is restored.
13 million dollar city hall, million dollar attorney bills for 06, cronyism, rampant nepotism, lets hope our newly elected officials are responsible. you're their to serve the people not yourself friends or family members.
I see that Brian and Dickie 's hand picked boy went down in flames, " but don't fret" I'm sure they will create a newly concocted position for you.
Yes a new position director of Morris Health and bus driver to rallies. Now I know why the mayor opposes the surgicenter.
Morris officials are planning a fire truck poker run to protest those dam surgical centers. By golly, we don't need not more doctors 'round here!
Hospital is manufacturing a "crisis". Watch the letter writing campaign in MDH. Notice how all letters are similar, all derived from the same set of talking points disseminated by the hospital. The only crisis may be in the bloated administration and management, who are drawing 6 figures easily. The hypocrisy of the situation-- warning of "crisis", doom and gloom, etc, vs. bloated budget of the administration, is obvious.
Media should press Corbett on the whopper, the "62% loss" figure that they concocted.
doctors lounge blog has some figures from Bloomington Normal, after their surgicenter went up. The hospital's campaign is an insult to our intelligence...
Please check the information on non for profit status. By being non-for profit certain obligations need to be fulfilled. That is actively carried. The purpose is to allow the hospital care for the community with charitable work. The federal, state and local governments are very generous in this since the tax burden is then carried by the rsidents of the area. Even sales taxes are exempt. Just ball parking figures about 35-45% of gross income is witheld from the community. If a proprtional amount of charitable work is given back to the community then this is fair. By its own admission Morris Hospital gave back only 1.3% to charity care. Pretty good math if you can get it. I think more people should question if Morris Hospital really gives to the community or takes form it. I am sure we would all trade our status to non for profit and give 1.3% of our income back to keep this status. Add to this real estate taxes. Yes a hospital is a benefit to the community but not to benefit from the community. Maybe the status needs to investigated.
Look into what happened at Provena Covenant in Urbana. The Illinois Department of Revenue REVOKED its tax exempt status because it dedicated only .7% of its revenues toward charity care, which amounted to less than the amount it would have spent on property taxes. The Sangamon County court upheld the decision.
It is time to take a close look at Morris Hospital and evaluate whether its primary purpose is in fact charity. Perhaps the hospital does not deserve the exemption any more than Provena Covenant.
Just think. If MH was denied its non profit status, which it obviously doesn't deserve, and had to pay taxes, we may get music and art back in the schools. If they took charity cases, it would be a write-off and they'd still benefit.
could you imagine if we had REAL MEDIA locally, newspapers and radio that would ask the tough questions? Not the fluff put on the radio and MDH. Could you see Corbett at a press conference in front of REAL MEDIA, getting grilled about this fiasco? Same goes with respect to local politicians and the monkey business that goes on. Naw, it won't happen.
I don't think that local media reported that hospital CEO appeared before Grundy Co. Board on Tuesday 4/24, reported in Friday 4/27 Kankakee Daily Journal (article penned by Dean Tambling). Corbett continued the "62% loss of outpatient business" contention, and tried to tug at heartstrings about all the charitable contributions. The article concluded with "The Board took no action."
Prepare yourselves for further hypocrisy from the hospital. At this time hospital is claiming "underutilization" of their operating rooms during current certificate of need proceedings, which should culminate in decision by the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Board, at end of this July, about Channahon surgicenter, which the hospital considers a competitor. At the same time concrete plans have been drawn up for a hospital operating room expansion, that could DOUBLE the number of hospital operating rooms! Hospital doesn't plan on sending letter of intent regarding this expansion, to the IHPFB, till after current CON proceedings. Hospital will have to turn about face after July, and claim overutilization and a need for more operating rooms! The hypocrisy is sickening. Will MDH tackle this one?
Listening to all of this really makes me giggle...Maybe everyone should check the financial reports (which are made public-if you cared to read the facts) and notice how much Morris Hospital benefits the community and many of the people in it!!
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