$100 MILLION FOR HOSPITALS MORE THAN A DOZEN FACILITIES TO GET UPGRADES.Byline: Troy Anderson Staff Writer Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County supervisors set aside $100 million in surplus funds Surplus funds Cash flow available after payment of taxes in a project. on Tuesday to upgrade more than a dozen public hospitals and clinics. Dr. Thomas Garthwaite, who heads the Department of Health Services Department of Health Services may refer to:
The supervisors set aside the $100 million using a $138 million surplus - the result of a property tax windfall and other revenues. It's the third time the county has spent or set aside funds since late last year when officials discovered a $309 million surplus. In June, the board approved a $19.6 billion budget, $1 billion more than the $18.5 billion budget proposed in April, thanks mainly to soaring property tax revenues. Of the remaining surplus, the supervisors allocated $13 million for mental health services health services Managed care The benefits covered under a health contract , $10 million for Hurricane Katrina evacuees Resident or transient persons who have been ordered or authorized to move by competent authorities, and whose movement and accommodation are planned, organized and controlled by such authorities. , $4.5 million for information technology upgrades and $3 million for the county's Quality and Productivity Commission. Health officials plan to prepare a report recommending how the money should be spent, giving priority to the most urgent needs to maintain hospital accreditation and protect patient safety. Board Chairwoman Gloria Molina said she was surprised by the amount of work that needs to be done in the Health Department, which faces a $140 million operational shortfall in July 2006, rising to $889 million by July 2008. ``I was very, very concerned when we saw that (Martin Luther King-Drew Medical Center) capital costs were escalating,'' Molina said. ``But obviously, this is going on at all of our health care campuses.'' In his report, Garthwaite outlined 121 unfunded improvement projects needed at four county hospitals and 10 health centers. The facilities will need at least $35 million in basic improvements to meet licensing and accreditation standards. ``We have various buildings in various ages, some of which are quite old and by more modern standards are quite inadequate in terms of the care we are giving in those,'' Garthwaite said. ``It's a matter of bringing major parts of the building up to standards and not deferring maintenance for too long. That's always a challenge in a system whose finances are as tenuous as ours.'' Troy Anderson, (213) 974-8985 troy.anderson(at)dailynews.com MEDICAL FIXES Officials say Los Angeles County needs to spend $774 million for seismic upgrades and other capital improvements at public hospitals and clinics. The projects include: --$88 million at Olive View-UCLA Medical Center Olive View-UCLA Medical Center is a hospital located in the Sylmar neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. The hospital was founded on October 27, 1920, and is funded by Los Angeles County [1]. in Sylmar for a tuberculosis unit; fire-protection reservoir and other system upgrades; and water-main replacement. --$77 million to replace the High Desert Multipurpose mul·ti·pur·pose adj. Designed or used for several purposes: a multipurpose room; multipurpose software. multipurpose Adjective Ambulatory Care Center ambulatory care center Walk-in clinic Medical practice A free-standing facility that provides non-emergent medical, or less commonly, dental services in Lancaster. --$439 million at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center Harbor-UCLA Medical Center is a hospital located within the city of Torrance, California, USA. The hospital was founded in 1946, and is funded by Los Angeles County Harbor-UCLA serves as the Level I Trauma Center for the South Bay area. in Torrance for new surgical and emergency rooms. CAPTION(S): box Box: MEDICAL FIXES (see text) |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion