The Collin County Observer

A healthy discussion
Dallas Morning News Community Opinions
Regional talks should focus on finding a just, fair solution, says BILL BAUMBACH of Wylie

12:00 AM CDT on Thursday, September 20, 2007

In the Bible, the devil's name is legion, but in the Collin County Commissioners courtroom, the evil one has a name – Dr. Ron J. Anderson.

He is no devil. What he is, to the chagrin of Collin County commissioners, is a doctor who treats the sick and injured people who come to his hospital. Dr. Anderson is the president and CEO of Parkland Hospital in Dallas.

Collin County Commissioners believe he is a demon who wants to swallow entire county budgets in a quest for a regional hospital district.

Unfortunately, many of those who do come to his hospital are the poor and uninsured from suburban counties, such as Collin. Dallas County taxpayers naturally do not want to pick up the tab for counties who won't pony up for a hospital. And Collin County commissioners shudder at the thought that they should pay the bills for their poor.

A few years ago, Commissioner Phyllis Cole told the Houston Chronicle, "Parkland believes anybody who shows up should get health care. It's not our problem they don't qualify patients before they admit them. I wish they would get off my back."

The sad fact is that often the uninsured and poor have nowhere else to go. So they show up at Parkland or other large public hospitals paid for by the citizens of those hospital districts. In 2006, Collin County residents left Parkland with more than $4.5 million in unpaid bills.

The public hospitals want help in meeting needs they believe are being shirked by suburban counties; the suburban counties live in terror of facing a bottomless pit of uncontrollable medical bills.

Last year the Legislature passed HB 3154 to begin a public discussion on the health care needs of those not served by a public hospital. In a statement filed with the bill, its author, Jodi Laubenberg of Parker wrote, "Much discussion of late has centered around the regionalization of indigent health care throughout the state. However, the discussion should include both public hospitals and local county officials.

"While regionalized health care is a possible solution to the state's indigent health care situation, all options should be explored. HB 3154 encourages such a study by establishing a regional health care systems review task force, which would include the local county governments and county hospitals."

HB 3154 calls for a regional conference made up of all county commissioners, county judges, state legislators and all public and private hospital administrators from the 19-county Texas Public Health Region 3. This committee will act as a task force, holding public hearings and then issuing a report by September 2008.

The first meeting of this committee is scheduled for Monday, from 8 to 11 a.m., at the McDermott? Suite on the UT-Dallas campus in Richardson

Of the hundreds of participants invited to be part of this, only two are from public hospitals – Dr. Anderson and Dr. David Cecero from John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth.

Dr. Anderson is probably up for the job, though. He has been named one of the most "powerful people in health care" by several magazines and journals, has served on the executive committee of the State Task Force on Indigent Health Care and, in 1985, played a major role in the passage of landmark legislation concerning indigent health care in Texas.

I hope you can make plans to attend this historic first meeting of politicians and doctors. I'll be there, and I'll be praying the committee finds a path of compassion, wisdom and justice.

Bill Baumbach is a Wylie resident and was the Democratic candidate for Collin County Commissioners Court, Precinct 2, last year. His e-mail address is bill@baumbach.org.A version of this column appeared on Mr. Baumbach's blog, The Collin County Observer.