The Sentinel from Carlisle, Pennsylvania • 4

A4 The Sentinel, Carlisle. Sundav Nmeniber 14, 2000 Bills collect dust Questions remain on proposed sale am the foundation decides to mance of Carlisle Hospital or future potential? If future potential, how would it be realized? How much would the buyer pay for transfer of control of the hospital? Would the transaction include a "control What assurances would the parlies give as to whether Carlisle Hospital will continue to operate as a hospital? Would the contract include a clause forbidding future closure or scaling back the hospital's mission? How would these provisions be enforced? Would the transaction include a "buy-back" clause where a local entity would have the right of first refusal to buy the hospital should it face closure? Where would thai money come from? Does the transaction include a mechanism for monitoring and enforcing commitments the for-profit buyer would make? Once a sale is complete, the proceeds would be donated to a non-profit charitable foundation, and their use would be determined by a local board. The intent is to separate the community's charitable assets from the for-profit's balance sheets. But could the for-profit could benefit indirectly from the foundation funds? If the hospital discontinues unprofitable services given as to hether the for-profit companies being considered arc interested in buying all of the CHHS companies. How will the for-profit entity respond to changes in community needs after the sale? How has the for-profit company responded to difficult financial times in the past? How would it deal with any future, cyclical downturns in the economy? What percentage of the health care dollar spent at the hospital would go toward corporate overhead, legal management and other contracts with the buyer and related companies? Would annual profit margins earned at Carlisle Hospital be reinvested back into the local hospital? Would the for-profit company employ local vendors? How would the for-profit go about infusing cash into the Carlisle community to build the new hospital? How docs that differ from the way non-profits raise funds? An appraiser would be hired to help determine a sale price.

But would the value being considered include any non-cash considerations, including promises between buyer and seller? What are those promises? Would the determined value hinge on actual past perfor- The possible conversion of Carlisle Hospital into a for-profit operation run by a national corporation raises a number of questions. The Carlisle Hospital and Health Services Board of Trustees committee charged ith finding a possible partner or new owner was expected to recommend one of two firms at the Nov. 6 meeting. The committee, however, did not make a recommendation at that meeting and is now expected to collect more information to share with the full CHHS board next month. Hospital officials have said they are looking for a entity in step with the hospital mission statement, including providing charity care, and maintaining the current level of staffing and services.

The following is a list of questions that still are not fully answered. Would the transaction be a joint-venture or an outright sale? If the existing hospital facility on Parker Street is not part of the deal, hat is being sold? What parts of Carlisle Hospital and Health Services would be included in the sale? President Michael Halstead has said he prefers including all the entities in the sale, rather than having a for-profit taking only certain parts. No response has been finance those services in some other form, wouldn't the for-profit benefit by culling its losses? Would there be any loopholes, such as capital calls, that would allow the for-profit lo access or benefit from the non-profit funds? What mechanisms insure this scenario won't happen? What promises or commitments would CHHS make to the buyer? Aside from medical services at the new hospital, what other benefits would the for-profit provide to the community? What percentage of scats would locals hold on the new board of directors? Would the board face any limitations on local control over the new hospital? Would the local board have the power to "veto" decisions made at the corporate level? Who would serve on the nonprofit foundation board? How would they be chosen? How would the non-profit foundation's mission be decided? Would the public have a chance to offer suggestions? Do any hospital officials or trustees involved in this decision have a conflict of interest? Would Carlisle Hospital-affiliated physicians be offered limited partnerships in the for-profit company? care provided over the past three years by every facility owned or controlled by the acquiring entity; a health impact plan outlining how health access, services and coverage would not be harmed by the proposed transaction, and an annual commitment to provide free medical care. The bill would also give the public access to information the attorney general used in deciding a proposed transaction free of charge. The two bills can be viewed on-line at the General Assembly's Internet page.

state. pans Click on "session information." Then click on "electronic bill room" and tvpe "SB 1231" and "HB1769" to view on-line copies. About a dozen other states, including Man land and Ohio, give attorney generals approval power. Other slates, such as Ohio and Washington D.C.. require transaction documents to be placed in the public record, but Maryland does not.

Rhode Island requires for-profit buyers to seek approval from both the state attorney general and the department of health. It also requires all licensed hospitals to provide charity and uncompensated care. Hospitals that do not may lose their licenses. Sentinel Reporter David Blxmire Bills proposed to regulate the sale of non-profit hospitals to for-profit corporations have been collecting dust in Pennsylvania General Assembly committees for a year or more. House Bill 1769 was introduced in June 1999 giving the state's attorney general power to approve such transactions.

But the bill was promptly shuttled to the House Judiciary Committee where it has been for 17 months. A similar bill introduced in the Senate in December 1999, SB 1 23 1 was also sent to the Senate Judiciary Committee. An aide to Senator Stewart J. Greenleaf, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said: hasn't been an issue anybody has been pushing." Transactions involving nonprofit hospitals are reviewed by the state attorney general and approved by county orphans courts. But the House bill, the tougher of the two, would give the attorney general power to approve the transactions.

It would also require either the non-profit seller or for-profit buyer to provide: an explanation of how a sale price was determined, and the methods of valuation and data used; patient statistics for the past three years and patient projections for the next year, including visits, admissions, and emergency room visits; a list of uncompensated Career I Sale Continued from A1 A Carlisle police officer for 23 years. O'Lcary has a bachelor's degree in criminal justice and social work from King's College and a master's degree in administration of justice from Shippensburg University. "From teaching DARE I thought about going back and gelling my second master's." Wilson has a program that allows participants to accept teaching positions while earning academic credit toward a traditional instructional certificate. "It's a good program for anyone interested in teaching and who has a bachelor's degree. There's a demand for teachers." He went back to school in Jan- uary 1 999 and took two courses at a time until he found his way to Michcle Hamilton's third-grade classroom at Rice.

Sacrifices have been made at home. For example, the O'Lcarys did not take a vacation this year so Officer Pat, as he is known to DARE graduates, could take three days off a week during his student teaching gig. He has worked the 1 1 p.m. to 7 a.m. shift Fridays and Saturdays with his weekdays free -since August.

"My department and the guys on the force have been great." While O'Leary spent many hours advising third graders as DARE officer, he says teaching is "totally different." Apart from the late nights folio of experiences as a Rice student-teacher that will be graded by Wilson faculty. After he gets teacher certification, he wants to retire from the police department and find a full-time teaching post. He figures he will substitute through June and possibly take over a classroom at the start of the next school year. in the meantime, sometimes his two worlds collide. Last weekend, he fell and cut his left hand while arresting a suspect and although the large Band-Aid prompted a few queries from curious students.

O'Leary insists he is not burned out or tired of police work. Instead, he calls his second career merely an extension of his first profession. spent grading papers, O'Leary has gained experience developing lesson plans for such topics as the Olympics, money and the life cycles of animals. Still, he says, the basic human interaction with 8-year-olds remains the same. "You have to blend a lot of your own personality and sense of humor and be yourself." he says.

"You have to let the kids see you're human being, too." Rice Principal Dean Clepper notes O'Leary has lived through it all as police officer. South Mid-dlelon resident, father and grandfather. "He's doing a very nice job. He's very thorough and very complete in what he's doing. He's very open lo suggestions." O'Leary is compiling a port- Continued from A1 However, Ms.

Miller says hospital donors or founders who have sued to stop the sale of non-profit hospitals have seen their cases throw out of court because of a lack of standing. The only party with the standing to challenge the transaction is the state attorney general, she says. Connolly says no one in his office recalls citizens going to court to challenge any hospital conversions recently. He doesn't know if Pennsylvania law limits legal challenges. "If a group of citizens file their own lawsuit, that's obviously their right, and a question for the court of whether they have standing." he savs.

Ms. Miller believes "the most effective tools" for opposing a sale include creation of a citizens group save the hospital foundation or something like that." She also believes citizens should establish a dialogue ith hospital officials and members of the board of trustees as early as possible. "You will find the board will set itself up as being imperv ious to inquiry" after the decision is made, she says. Ms. Miller says the for-profit firm will typically set up a separate, local corporation to make the actual purchase.

The transaction with the for-profit firm could include a number of contracts with the parent company, covering management, legal serv ices, corporate overhead or other areas. Path iiiise sululion, but Supervisor Victor Stabile noted "we don'i get any cooperation from the trail people when it comes to cutting things back" or cutting them down." an area behind my home that used to be a hay field not being maintained in accordance with township ordinances." Friday, Lake asked township supervisors for a change in the luwnsliip weed oidiilance lo eliminate "vagueness and ambiguity." It requires all vegetation in non-agricultural areas to be kept to six inches or less. Supervisors sought a compro- Continued from A1 Gray warned against such activity at that time. "I had no problem with that," Lake said. "But I did have a problem with JW Music 7 tm Baldwin Piano Gallery Sales and Service jT I '13 kA 1 I' ROLEX OYSTER PERPETUAL CHRONOMETERS The Kmart November 19, 2000 weekly ad circular, on page 12, features the Vitamin CD entitled This item will not be available at this time due to the Recording studio's change of release date.

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