Agenda item postponed to allow for stakeholder engagement
The Wake County Board of Commissioners tonight voted to officially delay consideration of an agenda item regarding the proposed strategic combination of WakeMed Health and Hospitals and Atrium Health. The Board made this decision to provide time for the hospitals to engage with the community, so they–along with the County Commission–can hear residents' comments and concerns about the combination.
“Community engagement is an important part of the work we do,” said Board Chair Don Mial. “While the joining of these hospitals may be positive for Wake County, we want to be fully open and transparent about the process, and that includes allowing ample time for public feedback.”
The Board’s hope is that WakeMed and Atrium Health will listen to the community’s insights, answer their questions and make changes as needed to address their concerns.
What Wake County’s role is
WakeMed is asking the Commissioners to approve changes to two legal documents, enabling the hospital to proceed with regulatory reviews. These documents are:
- The articles of incorporation and
- The transfer agreement.
The articles of incorporation define how many members the Board can appoint to the WakeMed Board of Directors and where they must reside. The amended version of this document continues to allow the Commission to appoint eight members to the 14-member WakeMed Board of Directors. It also confirms that the eight appointees must live within Wake County. This ensures that Wake County and its residents will continue to have a say in how WakeMed meets its obligations after this combination.
The transfer agreement restates WakeMed’s commitment to maintaining or improving the level of healthcare services it provides to residents from across the region including indigent and community healthcare. This is important because if WakeMed does not meet the expectations listed in the document, the hospital reverts back to the County.
What Wake County’s role is NOT
The Board does not have the legal authority to approve the joining of WakeMed and Atrium Health. WakeMed’s requested action is just the first of many in a detailed process that involves the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice.
The Commissioners are not involved in any way in WakeMed operations and they will not contribute any funding or any new property or assets to WakeMed as part of the proposed combination.
Background information
The WakeMed campus on New Bern Avenue in Raleigh was once the county hospital. In 1997, Wake County agreed to transfer the hospital to the nonprofit WakeMed Corporation under a state law that allows nonprofits to operate community hospitals if they:
- Agree to provide care to residents who are unable to pay and
- Continue to operate the hospital as a community general hospital open to the public.
The 1997 agreement and the statute say if the hospital ever stopped being a nonprofit community general hospital open to the public and providing indigent care, it could revert back to the county. Therefore, the Commission must approve any change in structure.
