In free societies, governments own nothing, but are entrusted with much.
We hope the Oktibbeha County Board of Supervisors will reflect on this after announcing its plans to negotiate a sale of the county-owned Oktibbeha County Hospital Regional Medical Center to Baptist Memorial Health Care, which owns 24 hospitals in the South, including Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Triangle in Columbus.
In announcing the decision, board president Marvel Howard provided very few details. Aside from saying Baptist had agreed to retain all current OCH employees, Howard declined to provide even the basic components of the sale, most significantly the sales price of the county-owned facility. A Tuesday press release from OCH provided a little more clarity, explaining the sale is not yet finalized, and that a formal agreement on the sale is expected around July 31, after a period of due diligence.
Another term for “county-owned” is “taxpayer-owned.” Imagine if your Realtor entered into negotiations with a potential buyer for your house but refused to tell you the initial offer until it was time to close. Is that any different than refusing to tell taxpayers who much the hospital they own has been sold for?
In private transactions, confidentiality during the due diligence phase of the transaction is standard.
That’s also true in many public-private transactions, something we’ve seen routinely in the economic development deals the Golden Triangle Development LINK has negotiated on behalf of its member counties.
This is a different matter. The hospital has been a public asset for more than 45 years. It also employs a lot of citizens. The taxpayers have shouldered millions of dollars in debt and the costs of expansions during this span.
By virtue of that relationship, taxpayers have a direct vested interest in this sale and have the right to know, at least in general terms, what the proposed agreement entails. Surely there’s a Letter of Intent or a Memorandum of Understanding between the county and Baptist that has at least a broad framework of a deal, even if some things still need to be worked out.
The people of Oktibbeha County should, at the very least, be given a reliable price range.
All we know at this point, according to Howard, is that the deal will eliminate the hospital’s $15.6 million debt, which sheds very little light on what taxpayers can expect to get from the sale of their property.
This is the third attempt by the county to sell the hospital since 2012. Those previous efforts, including a 2017 ballot referendum, failed in no small part because citizens did not believe the county was as forthcoming about the details of a sale as it should have been.
We urge the board not to make the same mistake this time. Providing citizens with the basic framework of the sale won’t compromise the negotiations. It will still provide confidentiality for sensitive aspects of the transaction. The board nor Baptist are not harmed by providing taxpayers with this information.
Let’s not keep the taxpayers in the dark.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 33 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
