County Hospital District Funds Top Wish List

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Dec. 19, 2000, 12:59AM

More hospital-district funds top county wish list

By ERIC BERGER

Copyright 2000 Houston Chronicle

Finding more money for its financially strapped hospital system tops

County's priorities heading into next month's Texas legislative session.

The changes sought by the county's $385,000 lobbying team include

simplifying the process to enroll patients in Medicaid, which would raise the

district's income because its base of paying clients, who heavily depend on

Medicaid, would increase.

The county also will seek more state funding for the hospital

district, which has already received a significant infusion of extra money from

the county this year.

" If we don't get some changes, the County Hospital District

will continue to have problems, and it could get worse every year, " said County

Judge Eckels.

Just this year, according to hospital-district research, the county

lost $9.8 million on patients who were eligible for Medicaid payments but were

not enrolled in the program. That does not include money similarly lost from

outpatient visits.

Local officials say the Medicaid enrollment process is cumbersome.

Much of the county's lobbying work will be done before the

Legislature's powerful appropriations committees.

Among the areas the hospital district might look for additional

money is the State Tertiary Care Fund, which reimburses the district for

out-of-county trauma care, such as when an uninsured non- County resident

is involved in a car accident and needs medical help.

Only $14 million was allocated to the Tertiary Care Fund last

session, when $60 million was needed statewide, local hospital district

officials said.

The county also will seek to address a growing problem with finding

nurses to fill its wards by getting money to increase the size of nursing-school

classes and offering scholarships for participants.

" The nursing shortage affects us in virtually every part of the

institution, and it's only going to worsen, " said Guest, the district's

chief executive officer.

County Commissioners Court meets today to consider the

county's legislative platform and is expected to approve the one-page document.

In addition to hospital-district issues, county lobbyists will also

seek more appropriations to road and bridge funds for the area, including

highways and the proposed Interstate 69 corridor.

Also, as has often been the case in past sessions, more power for

the county to regulate sexually oriented businesses, fireworks, noise and

trash-burning in its unincorporated areas will be sought.

The county also will vigorously oppose some planks of the clean-air

plan proposed earlier this year by the Texas Natural Resource Conservation

Commission.

The main complaint, Eckels said, is with the ban on morning use of

diesel construction equipment and the morning use of gasoline-powered lawn

equipment.

Eckels said the county would advocate replacing those cuts in

emissions with a comparable savings, but he didn't offer specifics. He said the

morning ban would drive up construction costs, take a heavy toll on workers and

their families and not be effective in reducing emissions.

The county also would oppose the environmental plan's plank to lower

all highway speed limits to 55 mph, he said.

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