There was a successful neurosurgeon in Flint, Michigan. He was looking
for a building to house his neurosurgery practice. His name is Dr. Jawad Shah, MD.
Dr. Shah needed a place for his neurology business. Because of his location in economically
disadvantaged Flint, MI, and the weakness of most markets 13 years ago, He was able to purchase
an unused 600,000 square foot General Motors office building for $50,000. That’s 8.33¢ per square ft.
That was a brilliant investment! He was able to set up his surgery center and rent space in that
building to other professionals. Good real-estate move.
Next he ran across Mercy Hospital in Chicago. The Sisters Of Mercy sold it to Trinity Healthcare because they couldn’t afford to keep it operational. After a while, Trinity decided that it would be cheaper to maintain the empty facility than to keep operating it a loss. They were about to shut it down when Insight bought it from them for $1. That’s one US dollar! Most of the Mercy employees had moved on and there was no mandate to continue providing all the expensive service that were provided under Trinity. They were able to keep it operating and, after 3 years were able to reopen the emergency department. Again, they were essentially given a 400 bed hospital in a major US city and by choosing to provide the more profitable services, they were able to make it “successful”. Another good real-estate move.
Next there was the Keokuk, Iowa hospital. This one actually was a rural hospital. It had just shut down. Insight bought it a little over a year ago. I don’t know what they paid. But, it hasn’t reopened yet. Time will tell if it will be a good real-estate move. My guess is that it will. Time will tell.
So, what experience does Insight have in turning around rural hospitals? The answer is Zip, none. They are saying that Mercy is a research hospital. What research have they contributed to the medical community? They claim to be a teaching hospital. What medical school are they working with? If we sell our entire, county-wide healthcare system, including two skilled nursing facilities, diabetes center, laboratory and a really nice hospital to Insight, we are taking a very serious risk as a county. If Insight doesn’t end up providing the services we need we are out of luck.
It’s OK for an investor to take risks with their own money. But, this is different. The SBHCD board wants to take this risk with, not only the county’s assets, but the health and welfare of our entire community.
That’s why I am afraid for my community. And, look at the tactics that the proponents of measure X are using! The wording of the ballot text makes it look like exactly the opposite of what it is.
And it’s unfortunate that an advisory measure B is on the same ballot. The two measures are not related. Some might think they are. Some people are attempting to confuse voters by saying that measure X is the advisory one. That is not true. The only purpose of measure X is to get voter approval to sell county assets. They can’t do it if the people say no.
Vote NO on measure X.
Next he ran across Mercy Hospital in Chicago. The Sisters Of Mercy sold it to Trinity Healthcare because they couldn’t afford to keep it operational. After a while, Trinity decided that it would be cheaper to maintain the empty facility than to keep operating it a loss. They were about to shut it down when Insight bought it from them for $1. That’s one US dollar! Most of the Mercy employees had moved on and there was no mandate to continue providing all the expensive service that were provided under Trinity. They were able to keep it operating and, after 3 years were able to reopen the emergency department. Again, they were essentially given a 400 bed hospital in a major US city and by choosing to provide the more profitable services, they were able to make it “successful”. Another good real-estate move.
Next there was the Keokuk, Iowa hospital. This one actually was a rural hospital. It had just shut down. Insight bought it a little over a year ago. I don’t know what they paid. But, it hasn’t reopened yet. Time will tell if it will be a good real-estate move. My guess is that it will. Time will tell.
So, what experience does Insight have in turning around rural hospitals? The answer is Zip, none. They are saying that Mercy is a research hospital. What research have they contributed to the medical community? They claim to be a teaching hospital. What medical school are they working with? If we sell our entire, county-wide healthcare system, including two skilled nursing facilities, diabetes center, laboratory and a really nice hospital to Insight, we are taking a very serious risk as a county. If Insight doesn’t end up providing the services we need we are out of luck.
It’s OK for an investor to take risks with their own money. But, this is different. The SBHCD board wants to take this risk with, not only the county’s assets, but the health and welfare of our entire community.
That’s why I am afraid for my community. And, look at the tactics that the proponents of measure X are using! The wording of the ballot text makes it look like exactly the opposite of what it is.
And it’s unfortunate that an advisory measure B is on the same ballot. The two measures are not related. Some might think they are. Some people are attempting to confuse voters by saying that measure X is the advisory one. That is not true. The only purpose of measure X is to get voter approval to sell county assets. They can’t do it if the people say no.
Vote NO on measure X.
