'Fatal Flaws' In Hospital Plan, Health Secretary Says

Maryland's health secretary said yesterday that a proposal for the Prince George's County hospital system by County Executive Jack B. Johnson has "fatal flaws." And he said he would recommend to Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) that no additional state money be given to it unless a plan to establish a state-run authority to oversee it is approved by the legislature.

Without the state money, Dimensions Healthcare System, which runs Prince George's Hospital Center in Cheverly and other county health facilities, could be forced to shut down.

"It's not a pretty scenario," Health Secretary John Colmers said. "There would be a substantial impact on the health of the community."

Colmers's comments deepened the rift between the county and the state over what to do with the system, which recently required an emergency $5 million cash infusion from the county to stay open.

County officials have been searching for a long-term solution to the hospital's financial woes. Colmers's announcement came one week after Johnson said he had reached an "understanding" with a hospital company to take the system over from Dimensions.

Johnson had declined to reveal who that company was. But yesterday, Colmers identified the company as Doctors Community Hospital in Lanham.

John Erzen, a spokesman for Johnson, said the county executive has not "had the opportunity to thoroughly review the concerns of the governor and the secretary of health, so it would be inappropriate for us to comment further at this time."

Colmers said he did not question Doctors Community Hospital's ability to handle such a takeover, which would cost $370 million, but he is not sure that the company would be the best operator.

"It's the only deal on the table, but we don't know if it's the best deal," Colmers said at a news conference yesterday at the State House in Annapolis.

Mary Dudley, a spokeswoman for Doctors Community Hospital, declined to comment.

Colmers said he believes that the county should seek broader competition for the takeover and that hospital suitors that have previously ignored the system might be enticed to show more interest if they knew that a steady stream of public dollars would take care of the system's massive debt.

Colmers said the problems with the county plan are that no funding source is outlined, it anticipates the necessity of a loan guarantee, and it does not address the pension liability.

The state was not given a copy of the bid documents, and it has asked for an appraisal of the land that the county owns and rents to Dimensions.

Colmers supports a bill passed last week by the House of Delegates and now under consideration by the Senate that would create an authority that would negotiate with management companies interested in taking over from Dimensions Healthcare System.

The bill also would impose a tax on county residents to pay off $150 million in debt and pension obligations.

The state would also contribute $90 million to $100 million over 10 years to the hospital system.

The Prince George's County Council opposes the bill, arguing that it relies too heavily on county taxpayers to solve the problems of a system that provides care for the region.

Dimensions has been losing money for years, but County Council members have said they are unwilling to direct any more local tax dollars to the system.