Trustees Consider Privatizing Hospital

Thursday, March 21, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

"The message is clear. You want local control," said health care consultant Robin Keith of Reno, who moderated this week's two-day board meeting and retreat.

Board President Katie Knudsen responded that outsiders would not understand the hospital's problems and situation, the Elko Daily Free Press reported.

The board asked Keith to research how the hospital might convert and outline the ramifications of such a switch.

Keith said there is legislation to allow for a change to a private, nonprofit hospital, which would give Elko General more flexibility in the highly competitive medical field while still allowing local controls and community involvement.

Those at the retreat also narrowed the field of possibilities for financing construction of a new hospital building estimated to cost $20 million to $30 million.

They agreed the hospital board should address a proposal by a Hawaiian development company to build the structure and rent it back to the hospital through a lease-purchase agreement.

Chief Financial Officer Jerry Buechler said a lease payment for such a facility could run $2.8 million a year.

The consensus was that if the board didn't enter into a lease-purchase agreement, a combination of efforts would be needed to finance a new facility including fund-raising by the hospital foundation, financing by the hospital itself, corporate support and a bond issue.

"We want to raise as much as we can," said Foundation Board Chairman Lisa Sled.