An upcoming decision will affect everyone in Key West and the Lower Keys, and public input is critical.
The board that oversees Key West’s only hospital has received proposals from companies that want to manage Lower Keys Medical Center when the current management agreement ends in 2029.
On Oct. 6, the applicants who responded to a Request for Proposals the Lower Florida Keys Hospital District board, whose members are appointed by the governor, will hear proposals from at least three potential hospital operators. The meeting is open to the public and will take place at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 6 at Tennessee Williams Theater.
Nearly 30 years ago, the hospital district board voted to lease Lower Keys Medical Center to a for-profit company called Health Management Associates (HMA) that took over management of the hospital. That company was later acquired by Community Health Systems (CHS), which remains the hospital operator today.
Their lease agreement ends in April 2029, and CHS officials last year asked the hospital district board to simply renew its lease for another 30 years. But a handful of concerned and committed residents convinced the board to seek proposals from different potential hospital operators who want to run Lower Keys Medical Center rather than be tethered to the same operator for another 30 years.
It’s taken more than two years of meetings, multiple consultants, contentious board interactions, a fact-finding committee, a task force and community advocates, but a comprehensive Request for Proposals was issued, and the bids have come in from entities interested in running our hospital.
The hospital district board meets at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 6 at Tennessee Williams Theater, where the applicants will present their proposals to the board and the public.
The final decision is still more than a year away, and will involve plenty of public meetings. The board’s consultants will continue to guide the process, evaluate proposals and advise the board on negotiations once an operator is selected.
“Public attendance and participation is a vital component of this process,” said Spencer Krenke, a Key West resident and advocate who created the nonprofit Our Hospital Key West (ohkw.org) and was instrumental in urging the board to consider other hospital operators before renewing a 30-year lease.
“Unlike the 1999 agreement under which current operator CHS operates Lower Keys Medical Center — which functions primarily as a standard landlord-tenant contract expiring in April 2029 — the new RFP criteria represents a fundamental shift in healthcare oversight,” Krenke said this week. “The hospital district is transitioning its role from a passive landlord to an active guardian of public health by evaluating proposals based on key services and capabilities,” including hospital quality and reputation; healthcare services, capabilities and commitments to the community; local investment and indigent care services.
“The formal RFP and its weighted-scoring methodology were approved on July 7 by the hospital district board following a two-plus-year collaboration involving Our Hospital Key West, community supporters, then-city commissioner, now Mayor Sam Kaufman’s hospital task force and the hospital district board’s fact-finding committee,” Krenke said, adding, “While the exact number of submitting operators is currently unconfirmed, current operator Community Health Systems (CHS), Mount Sinai Medical Center and Baptist Health are expected to be among the applicants who will present their proposals at the Oct. 6 meeting.
See the full RFP and other relevant documents at OHkw.org.
