Charleston, WV (Wowk) – Legislators have identified health care as the main discussion point for this legislative session.
The joint health committee in West Virginia met on Tuesday to discuss a decades of time that some legislators want to see.
Since 1977, recent and existing healthcare providers have had to obtain permission of state permission, to build, expand or offer a recent service.
This is referred to as the “needs certificate”, and many in the West Virginia State Capitol are divided whether it helps or violates the health system of West Virginia.
“They limit access, increase costs, improve the quality and the foundation do not innovate,” said Jessica Dobrinsky, employee of the cardinal institute. “
“I think it is very limited by the competition when your competition rejects a hospital or an expansion in the hospital,” said DEL. Adam Burkhammer (R-Lewis). “The competition controls what you can do or not.”
Burkhammer represents Lewis County, where Mon Health plans to move the Stonewall Jackson Memorial Hospital.
However, the recent location would be less than 15 miles from St. Joseph’s Hospital of the WVU Medicine in Buckhannon, which could mean a loss of federal financing for St. Josephs.
“We cannot commit these resources if we know that we could lose our critical access status. It is a question of distance. If we could agree if it could be built and we could have critical access, it would not be a problem, “said Skip Gjolberg with West Virginia Hospital Association. Our community does not want to lose our community for over 100 years.
Gjolberg believes that there is a problem with the workforce, not with a certificate of needs.
“I don’t understand what the connection between the opening of more facilities and white coats and nurses appears magically because they are not. We always have problems with the staff, “said Gjolberg.” Con is not the reason why we don’t have the staff. Schools produce what they can do, but they don’t produce enough. “
The majority of the Senate majority, Jay Taylor (R-Taylor), says that the needs certificate has to be reformed, is not certain whether it must be removed in total.
“We could certainly work under the structure there,” said the Republican senator from Taylor County. “I know that some say that the healthcare system is not a free market. I support it that we have as much free market in West Virginia as we can. I am sure that we will reach an agreement across the board. “
In some states, legislative certificates have been canceled, but currently 35 countries have a right to demand in their books.
