$40 million appropriated by the legislature during the most recent special session is now available as grant funding for rural hospitals.
Gov. Jim Justice’s office announced the launch of the Rural Hospitals Grant Program in a press release Thursday, with a link to the application.
“Our rural hospitals are cornerstones of our communities in West Virginia,” Justice said in the release. “They support our families and neighbors in their toughest moments. Every West Virginian deserves access to quality healthcare, no matter where they live. This funding will help us make that a reality for everyone.”
The grant program has $40 million of appropriated funds to disburse. During the most recent special session of the legislature, lawmakers passed Senate Bill 2010, appropriating the surplus balance to the Governor’s Civil Contingent Fund to support rural hospitals.
Neither the application form, nor the press release make clear what constitutes a rural hospital, but the policies and procedures document for the grant program reads, “All rural hospitals in this state are eligible to apply.”
According to the application, grants must be used for capital improvement projects expected to be completed within 18 months of the date of the award.
Applications are due by November 15 and the governor’s office will disburse funds upon verification of eligibility.
Appalachia Health News is a project of West Virginia Public Broadcasting with support from Marshall Health.
After severe flooding in late May, Berkeley Medical Center will reopen its operating rooms in early July. The facility will also receive two new mobile operating rooms to ease the transition.
The Berkeley Medical Center will be “totally back up and running” by July 14 after flooding closed the facility’s operating rooms last month, according to Albert Wright, president of the West Virginia University (WVU) Health System.
Wright said the Martinsburg medical facility, operated by WVU Medicine, was undergoing construction on its second floor in late May.
During the construction, parts of the facility’s first floor — home to its 10 inpatient operating rooms — were exposed to the elements.
Wright said the “construction mishap” caused a “breach between the second floor of their building and the first floor,” which “allowed water to penetrate into that operating room floor.”
“It was a man-made breach by accident,” he said.
The facility was flooded with dirty rainwater, which caused significant damage. In the weeks since the flooding, construction teams have had to demolish and replace significant portions of the operating rooms to ensure they meet medical standards.
“Operating rooms are really some of the most sterile areas you have in a hospital. We have to make sure that they’re clean and free from infection,” Wright said.
Despite the damages, Wright said teams on site have made fast progress on the repairs.
By July 3, WVU Medicine anticipates that five of the 10 operating rooms will be operational again. By July 14, Wright said the remaining five operating rooms will be back as well.
“When I first saw the flooding, if you would have told me we’d be back up and running by the middle of July, I would have been thrilled,” Wright said. “That’s a compliment to the work that’s been done.”
Berkeley Medical Center has referred most patients with non-emergency needs to nearby medical facilities in Berkeley and Jefferson counties in the weeks following the flooding incident.
Photo Credit: Jack Walker/West Virginia Public Broadcasting
Wright said Berkeley Medical Center will also receive two mobile operating rooms July 3 to aid the facility’s transition back to full operations.
In the weeks after the flooding, Berkeley Medical Center temporarily only admitted trauma, obstetric and emergency surgery cases.
Patients with other needs were referred to the facility’s Outpatient Surgery Center or nearby facilities like the Jefferson Medical Center, which has three operating rooms.
Wright said WVU Medicine expanded hours of operation for some medical facilities to meet increased demand.
Still, the sudden bump in patient need put a strain on nearby facilities, Wright said. Plus, some patients had specific care requirements that surrounding facilities had difficulty meeting.
To meet additional needs, Wright said the Berkeley Medical Center also referred patients to facilities farther away, including Morgantown and Winchester, Virginia.
While some of those referrals pushed patients outside of the WVU Health System, Wright said ongoing coordination between medical facilities made referrals like these easier.
“One of the good things about health care is, even though we sometimes compete with other systems for patients, when any health care facilities are in a challenging situation, everybody steps up for good patient care,” he said.
While the flooding might have put a strain on medical facilities in Berkeley and Jefferson counties, Wright said he was “so proud” of staff members at the hospitals for picking up the slack.
“The team has really done a good job of making sure patients receive the care they need,” he said. “I’m proud of how they [have] come through this, but I’ll also be glad when this is all over and behind us.”
Full operations at the Berkeley Medical Center in Martinsburg are slated to resume in early July, following works of construction work.
Photo Credit: Jack Walker/West Virginia Public Broadcasting
The department that oversees West Virginia’s state-run hospitals announced progress in fully staffing the facilities.
Staffing State Hospitals
The vacancy rate at state run hospitals has fallen by 8 percent according to the West Virginia Department of Health Facilities (DHF). The agency announced the hiring of more than 80 new employees at its state-run facilities and forty contracted staff converted to state employees. It is unclear what the staffing vacancy rate is now.
DHF Cabinet Secretary Michael Caruso attributed the progress to new recruitment and retention initiatives launched in January, including new pay rates, flexible work schedules, increased incentives for difficult shifts, targeted funding for hard-to-fill positions, and appointment incentives.
The new system is based on recommendations from a market study conducted by Korn Ferry, an organizational consulting firm. The system also ensures employees retain their existing benefits package, including health insurance, dental, vision and life insurance.
“This is a tremendous accomplishment,” Caruso said. “We are committed to providing excellent care for our patients, while also ensuring our staff are fairly compensated.”
Touring State Hospitals
On Wednesday the DHF said lawmakers toured two more state facilities, including Hopemont Hospital where, in January, a patient was left in scalding water for 47 minutes and later died at an area hospital from his injuries.
Led by Caruso, the group visited John Manchin Sr. Health Care Center in Fairmont in the morning and Hopemont Hospital in the afternoon.
“I am so grateful our dedicated public servants were able to see the passion the hospitals’ staff have in caring for some of our state’s most vulnerable citizens,” Caruso said. “I look forward to future partnerships as we work to overcome challenges and celebrate successes together.”
Chair of the Legislative Oversight Commission on Health and Human Resources Accountability (LOCHHRA), Del. Amy Summers, a R-Taylor attended the tour.
“We appreciate the DHF coordinating these site visits to allow legislators the opportunity to view the care residents are receiving, as well as the facilities themselves,” Summers said.
In May, LOCHHRA members visited Jackie Withrow Hospital in Beckley as part of these scheduled tours. Before that, they visited Mildred-Mitchell Bateman Hospital in Huntington and William R. Sharpe, Jr. Hospital in Weston.
Appalachia Health News is a project of West Virginia Public Broadcasting with support from Marshall Health.
The United States Department of Health and Human Services has allocated more than $6 million to health services in West Virginia, including health centers in Greenbrier, Hancock and Webster counties.
The United States Department of Health and Human Services has allocated $6,448,505 to health services in West Virginia.
The new slate of funding will go toward health care centers in Hancock, Greenbrier and Webster counties, as well as the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources.
The funds aim to bolster public health infrastructure in West Virginia. Nationally, rural health care centers face an increased likelihood of closure, often because of funding issues tied to lower patient volumes.
This can leave rural residents at risk of reduced health care access. But the new funding aims to reinforce services already in place.
Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., shared news of the new investment in a press release Wednesday.
Manchin said the new funding’s impact will extend beyond the health care centers themselves, directly supporting the residents of West Virginia.
“The awards announced today will support public health infrastructure statewide,” he said.
The following health care resources were selected for funding:
West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources: $3,025,950
Change, Inc., Hancock County: $1,196,097
Rainelle Medical Center, Greenbrier County: $1,184,522
Camden on Gauley Medical Center, Webster County: $1,067,886
A health facility would not need to obtain a certificate of need to operate in West Virginia if a House bill becomes law.
Delegates debated certificates of need for health facilities Tuesday during the meeting of the House Health and Human Resources Committee. Proponents of eliminating the practice say it would open the state to more health care services, but health officials say it would put the existing health care system at risk.
A certificate of need (CON) is a legal documentation process in which a proposed healthcare facility must show the need for their facility at a certain location and financial feasibility, among other factors.
Currently in West Virginia, all health care providers, unless otherwise exempt, must obtain a CON before adding or expanding health care services, exceeding the capital expenditure threshold of $5,803,788, obtaining major medical equipment valued at $5,803,788 or more, or developing or acquiring new health care facilities.
House Bill 4909 would eliminate those requirements for all health facilities in West Virginia except hospice care homes.
Jim Kaufman, president of the West Virginia Hospital Association, testified before the House Health and Human Resources Committee on Tuesday. He said the association strongly opposes the repeal of CON.
“Our concern is if you eliminate CON, basically, you could have organizations from outside the state come in and cherry-pick services,” Kaufman said. “Usually what you’re going to see is they’re going to go after commercial pay patients, you’re paying patients and leave the institutions that are here with their Medicaid and uninsured population, and you’re gonna see the entire health care delivery system undermined.”
Kaufman testified that the average West Virginia hospital’s payer base is 75 percent Medicaid and Medicare. The national average is 40 percent.
“That’s why we feel it would undermine the health care delivery system in this state, leaving our existing hospitals, whether they’re a critical access hospital or midsize hospitals, with basically the lower paying patients,” Kaufman said.
Del. Heather Tully, R-Nicholas, questioned Heather Conley, an assistant attorney general embedded with the Health Care Authority. Tully asked if a facility’s certificate of need could be reconsidered if they’re not meeting a community’s needs.
“Once you have a CON, you have to do something pretty egregious, and someone has to bring it up before anything can happen to your CON,” Conley said.
Tully spoke in support of the bill, citing concerns about lack of oversight once a CON is granted.
“I think it’s concerning that we don’t look at the diversions and bed closures and changing of staffing levels,” Tully said. “So for that reason, I will be supporting this bill. And hopefully we will infuse some competition into health care and make it make everybody better.”
Gayle Manchin, ARC federal co-chair and wife of U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., was released from the hospital Wednesday following a Monday car crash in Alabama.
Gayle Manchin, federal co-chair of the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC), and wife of U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, was released from an Alabama hospital on Wednesday following a Monday car crash.
Manchin and Guy Land, ARC congressional liaison, were heading to an ARC event in Birmingham, Alabama when a driver fleeing police struck their vehicle.
Police officers allegedly attempted to stop the driver, Tradarryl Rishad Boykins, in relation to a felony warrant and traffic offense, al.com reported Wednesday. Boykins attempted to evade the officers, resulting in a seven-minute car chase and the ensuing collision.
Boykins is now charged with two counts of felony assault, attempting to elude police and illegal possession of a firearm, the Associated Press reported. He is being held on a $2 million bond, and court records do not yet show whether he has legal representation.
After his wife’s discharge Wednesday, Sen. Manchin released a statement noting that she had returned to West Virginia to receive further care from family members.
“We want to thank everyone for the outpouring of support,” Manchin said.
Land is still receiving treatment at a hospital in Birmingham. In a Wednesday press release, the ARC said he “is continuing to receive excellent medical care” from staff at the medical facility.
