Rent for the Northwest Mississippi Regional Medical Center in the amount of $500,000 is due every January and goes to the Coahoma County Board of Supervisors, but Curae Health Inc.’s bankruptcy may cause the payment to be delayed.
The Board of Supervisors took precautions during its Wednesday, Dec. 19 board meeting and passed a resolution that could allow them to transfer $500,000 from the hospital reserve fund to the general fund in lieu of the late rent payment.
State Rep. Orlando Paden and state Sen. Robert Jackson will take the matter to the state legislature in early 2019. The state house and senate will have to vote on whether or not to allow the supervisors to transfer the $500,000 to the county’s general fund.
The supervisors have wired Curae $3,291,364.88 from the hospital reserve fund to get through three pay periods and did not need permission from the legislature. However, transferring the $500,000 is a different situation.
“The money (hospital reserve fund) is there to keep the hospital open,” said Paul Pearson, president of the Board of Supervisors. “That money, that $500,000, isn’t going to keep the hospital open. It’s going in the general fund.”
Pearson said, when the legislature sees hospital matter is the reason the $500,000 is needed for the general fund, the legislature approving the transfer until the county can recoup the half-million dollars should not be a problem.
He has been on the Board of Supervisors since 1996 and said this type of request has never been denied during his tenure.
“We fully expect the $500,000 lease payment to be made,” county attorney Tom Ross explained to the Board of Supervisors. “When it’s going to be made, I can’t tell you, but what we’re doing is asking the legislature to give us authority to use the $500,000 to utilize in this year’s budget. When the rent money comes in, you just pay back the hospital fund.”
Ross drafted the resolutions and said he discussed the matter with Paden.
“Due to the Curae bankruptcy, I’m not sure at what point that will get paid,” Ross said.
A deal was made at a bankruptcy hearing in Nashville for Community Health Systems to take over the hospital for approximately one year until a buyer is found. After some paperwork issues are taken care of with Curae’s bankruptcy in February 2019, CHS will be the lone company on the lease.
CHS will take over handling the lease in February, which is after the time the rent is due.
Both Pearson and supervisor Johnny Newson felt the $500,000 would not be needed until toward the end of the fiscal year in October 2019.
“Technically, we won’t see a shortfall until the end of the year,” Newson said.
Pearson concurred.
“$500,000 will show up at the very end of the budget,” he said. “You’re talking about a half a million dollars. We desperately do need it, but it’s going to show up about August, September is when you’re going to start seeing this.”
Pearson said the legislature should approve the transfer by April, long before the time the $500,000 is needed.
“It just subsidizes our budget, the general fund,” he said.
