GALVESTON — Formation of a tax-funded hospital district to help pay for health care of underinsured residents was a critical issue to the University of Texas Medical Branch, Dr. David Callender told employees and island residents Tuesday at a town-hall meeting.
Callender, president of the medical branch, asked employees at the lightly attended meeting in William C. Levin Hall to help educate people about the need for a hospital district.
Callender’s discussion marked a rare public talk about an issue upon which the medical branch’s and island’s full recovery from Hurricane Ike depends but that few elected officials are willing to embrace.
Restoring the number of hospital beds the medical branch operated before Ike depends on voters approving the district, Callender said.
When the Legislature agreed to put $150 million toward construction of a tower that would provide enough space to get the bed count back to pre-Hurricane Ike levels of 550, it attached some strings.
The county must raise eligibility levels for uninsured patients to 100 percent of federal poverty level by increasing existing property taxes or by establishing a hospital district with authority to levy a new tax.
Without the second tower, the medical branch, home to the state’s oldest medical school, would be reduced to essentially a community hospital, officials have said.
A hospital district would expand bed capacity and access to health care while contributing to a stable work force and economy, Callender said. The medical branch intends to seek support from such organizations as the more than 800-member Galveston Chamber of Commerce and also the Galveston Economic Development Partnership, which promotes business on the island.
Medical branch officials also hope to dispel myths circulating about the district, including that it would pay for health care for illegal immigrants. Residents whose health care is paid for by the hospital district must undergo eligibility screening. Illegal immigrants and people living outside the district would not be covered, county officials have said.
Nor would the care be limited to the medical branch. The county would seek contracts with Mainland Medical Center, Clear Lake Regional and others so eligible residents would have options, officials have said.
Callender’s discussion about the hospital district was part of an overview of the medical branch’s status and post-storm progress.
The issue of a hospital district is expected to be put before county voters in November.
