ST. CROIX — Senators will meet Friday to set a date for an emergency session to consider giving more funds to both the territory’s hospitals after hearing concerns from physicians on St. Croix and St. Thomas, according to the Senate majority leader.
Senators stressed an urgent need to identify much-needed funding to assist both hospitals in addressing hiring needs and purchasing basic supplies after meeting with physicians Thursday at the Governor Juan F. Luis Hospital and Medical Center.
A handful of senators met with the St. Croix physicians after receiving a letter from them last week outlining a chronic physician and nursing shortage, an absence of critical supplies, and deferred maintenance of vital equipment.
Senators also received a letter earlier this week from physicians at Schneider Regional Medical Center informing them that patient care has become more difficult to administer, and patient safety has become more of an issue with funding as the main culprit.
Physicians from both hospitals pleaded with senators for additional funding to purchase basic supplies, pay vendors, and hire more staff.
After attending Thursday’s meeting with the JFLH physicians, Senate Majority Leader Kurt Vialet, a member of the Committee on Health, Hospitals and Human Services, said he and Senator Novelle Francis Jr. have sponsored a bill with a dedicated funding source that would provide over $5 million to each hospital. He said the plan was to introduce the bill during legislative session at the end of this month, but he is now pushing for an emergency session after hearing the concerns raised by the physicians from both hospitals.
“We’ll be planning a meeting tomorrow, a caucus of the whole with all the senators in the Legislature to discuss exactly how we’re going to accomplish this, what is going to be the date of the emergency session, and we are hoping that we are going to be able to provide some relief for both hospital systems in short order,” Vialet said Thursday.
Francis, who also attended the meeting with physicians, said he has been collaborating with his colleagues to utilize funds received from the government’s settlement with the estate of Jeffrey Epstein to address the immediate needs at the hospitals. He said administrators from both hospitals must prioritize their funding requests in terms of how they intend to spend it.
“Once they’re able to detail exactly how that money will be able to address the crisis situation they’re experiencing, I believe that we will have the funding be made available,” he said.
Francis, Committee on Budget, Appropriations and Finance chair, said senators intend to meet as a collective body Friday to further the discussion, noting the option for an emergency session to consider additional funding for the hospitals.
“We need to ensure that the hospital is ready, willing, and able to receive patients, and that they’ll be able to provide the best and adequate care to those patients,” he said.
JFLH, in a public statement posted on its Facebook page after Thursday’s meeting between physicians and senators, acknowledged the community’s concerns following the letter physicians sent senators “highlighting urgent funding needs for our hospitals.” Understanding the importance of transparency and collaboration, JFLH stated that it convened the meeting with hospital executives, physicians, and senators to address its current financial and operational status.
“The challenges faced by JFL are complex and multifaceted, including financial constraints, staffing shortages, and infrastructure needs,” according to the statement. “We are actively working with all stakeholders to develop sustainable solutions that prioritize patient care and staff well-being.”
While JFLH has taken steps to solve its funding issues, Schneider Regional Medical Center has also reached out to elected officials for assistance.
SRMC has publicly communicated its critical needs to the Legislature as hospital officials testified before senators, requesting an increase in funding to support operations, particularly to cover uncompensated care costs, according to Karen Rennie, who represents the office of Tina Comissiong, SRMC chief executive officer.
“We have let members of the Legislature, the Office of the Governor aware of our need and we are just waiting for further development,” she said.
Senator Ray Fonseca, Committee on Health, Hospitals and Human Services chair, said the story he has heard from hospital administrators has not been as clear as what he learned from the physicians.
“When you actually talk to physicians, the nurse practitioners, the actual health care providers, you get the real details,” he said.
After hearing the plea from physicians, Fonseca proposed an immediate $20 million funding solution to stabilize medical services by providing $10 million to each hospital. He said he has drafted an appropriation bill but has not identified a specific funding source.
Fonseca is still calling on Governor Albert Bryan Jr. to declare a hospital state of emergency. He formally requested the governor do so in a letter dated January 31.
READ MORE: “Fonseca skeptical of request for hospital state of emergency; Bryan committed to addressing issues”
After meeting with the St. Croix physicians and his colleagues Thursday to discuss the issues at JFLH, Fonseca said he is even more determined.
“I think I have more support now to demand that the governor declare a hospital state of emergency, and to use any funds available to include approaching a financial institution for a short-term, $20 million loan, and we’ll give $10 million to each hospital,” he said.
Senator Marise James, Committee on Disaster Recovery, Infrastructure and Planning chair, who attended the meeting with JFLH physicians, expressed support for any funding measure to assist the hospitals, including a state of emergency declaration or an appropriation bill passed by the Senate.
“At this point, we all just need to find the money and give the hospital the money that it needs,” she said. “I recently had two experiences, and I was provided with excellent care during the time that I was at the hospital, but it was clear to me that they’re providing it under trying circumstances. So, I believe that we have to find the money. We have to make health care a priority.”
In addition to Vialet, Francis, Fonseca, and James, former Senator Samuel Carrión attended the meeting in his capacity as legislative advisor for Senate President Milton Potter. The Senate president said he supports having the Legislature identify funding for the hospitals opposed to a declaration by the governor of a hospital state of emergency.
“I think it’s a matter of prioritizing,” Potter said. “And I think that if anything warrants us being creative in identifying funds, it is health and safety of our community. So, I think we’re going to look at any and all areas where monies might be available, maybe identifying some of the monies from the proceeds of the Epstein settlement funding.”
In exchange for the Legislature appropriating additional funds beyond the annual budgets for JFLH and SRMC, Vialet stressed a need for the hospitals to properly manage their affairs and bill patients on a regular basis to ensure they are collecting all the funds possible. He discussed a need for efficiency models and a change in practices if the hospitals are going to remain viable. He said since there is only one hospital in each district, quality health care must be provided.
“The Senate has an obligation to make sure that we provide whatever resources are necessary to make that happen, and the hospital definitely have a responsibility to make sure that they utilize these monies to improve the quality of health care, and that it’s also going to be sustainable because we don’t want six months down the line, we’re back to where we are right now,” he said.
