Editor’s note: The San Benito Health Care District unanimously approved moving forward with Insight Health Systems during the June 5 special meeting. The vote does not approve the partnership, but directs hospital staff to continue negotiations with Insight, district’s legal counsel Heidi A. Quinn said in the meeting. “Today’s decision is not final,” Director Devon Pack told BenitoLink. “Today’s decision is an opportunity for Insight to audition and to win over the public’s trust.” If insight is selected by the board, voters will decide in a nov. 5 ballot measure whether to approve or deny the sale. Full story upcoming. Lea este articulo en español aquí.
The San Benito Health Care District Board of Directors has called a special meeting for June 5 following a delay to approve an entity to take over management of Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital.
The meeting will be held at 5 p.m to consider the two remaining proposals and provide direction about a potential partner. One proposal is from Insight Health Systems, a Michigan-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit based upon universal Islamic teachings, according to its website.
The other proposal is from San Benito County, which calls for the creation of a joint powers authority to manage the hospital.
A source who asked not to be identified said Hazel Hawkins’ medical staff met with Insight in advance of the special meeting.
The source, who requested anonymity because they work at Hazel Hawkins and need to protect their job, claimed that the hospital’s executive team is orchestrating the deal in favor of a buyout by Insight to protect their own jobs.
“Clearly the CEO and administration are pushing for Insight,” the source said, pointing out that Insight founder Dr. Jawad Shah has publicly said he would keep the hospital’s current executive team. In March, Shah and two members of his executive team hosted a town hall to make their case. In the meeting, Shah said he was “fond” of the current Hazel Hawkins executives and would keep them, but would look to replace the members of the hospital’s board of directors.
Hazel Hawkins’ Public Information Officer Marcus Young responded: “The executive team is pushing for whatever deal will provide the best continuity of care for our community and the longest range success for the future of Hazel Hawkins.” He said any claim to the contrary was “preposterous” and “fed the rumor mill.”
“At no time has hospital leadership pressured the Board to go with any of the proposals,” Young said. “Hospital leadership and the Board are of one mind when it comes to making a decision on the best course of action. That being to ensure that San Benito County residents continue to have access to quality, lifesaving care right here in our community today and into the foreseeable future.”
The health care district board, an elected body which governs the hospital, would be disbanded in the event of a sale to Insight. According to the board’s bylaws, though the directors do not receive compensation, they are “entitled to participate in District-sponsored health and life insurance by virtue of their status as Board members.”
Young said he believes no board member is receiving health benefits.
At a May 20 meeting, health care district Director Jeri Hernandez was critical of the county’s proposal and openly sparred with San Benito County Supervisor Kollin Kosmicki.
In January, hospital directors Hernandez and Devon Pack, along with Chief Executive Officer Mary Casillas and Vice President Amy Breen-Lema, toured two Insight facilities in Michigan and Chicago. Casillas is a former member of the hospital board and closely associated with Hernandez.
Dayne Walling, Insight public policy and government relations director, confirmed that Shah met virtually with various hospital physicians June 3.
Cecilia Montalvo, a consultant for the county, said the county met with medical staff June 4 to discuss its proposal.
Insight has experience taking over distressed hospitals. These include hospitals in Michigan, which, according to the source at Hazel Hawkins, offer only limited services. None of its hospitals in Warren, Dearborn, or Flint, Michigan, have an emergency room, while its Chicago facility is a full-service hospital.
“Insight’s main facility is not a full-service hospital but rather a surgical center with neither an Emergency Room nor an ICU,” the source who works at Hazel Hawkins said. “Insight has an impressive history of promising large infusions of capital–but then not delivering.”
The source added that Insight promised to convert a 440-bed Chicago hospital into a “world-class facility”after its purchase in 2021, but is currently only staffed for 91 beds. According to the Illinois Hospital Report Card and Consumer Guide to Health Care, Insight’s Chicago hospital has a 42% patient satisfaction rating, 25% lower than the state average.
When asked if Hazel Hawkins would remain a hospital—something community members have expressed concerns about—Insight Chief Strategy Officer Atif Bawahab told BenitoLink: “Yes, Insight is committed to continuing Hazel Hawkins in perpetuity in line with our presence in all of our communities.”
Editor’s note: This article was revised on Thursday at 1:28 pm to allow Marcus Young, Hazel Hawkins’ Public Information Officer, to fully respond to claims made by a Hazel Hawkins employee.
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