Need for hospital district questioned

When hospitals districts were first formed after World War II, rural communities statewide embraced the idea of using property taxes to guarantee access to hospitals and medical care.

Fast forward more than six decades and 55 hospital districts statewide operate with the help of taxpayer money to help provide everything from emergency services to basic care.

"We wouldn't be viable without a tax district," said Rodger McCollum, superintendent and chief executive of Snoqualmie Valley Hospital in East King County.

But in Southeast King County — where rapid growth and transportation improvements have made private medical care an increasingly available option — some have begun to question the need for a public hospital district.

Valley Medical Center in Renton — the state's oldest public hospital district and the largest nonprofit hospital between Seattle and Tacoma — was formed in 1945 to provide service to what was then rural Southeast King County.

It was formed to meet the needs of a rural community that no longer exists, and some policymakers have called its model outdated.

Supporters of hospital districts say they play a vital role in growing areas like Southeast King County. One advantage of a hospital district is that they are owned and governed by residents, said Cassie Sauer, vice president of communications for the Washington State Hospital Association, a nonprofit-hospital trade association.

Taxpayers can elect officials to serve on a commission.

Property owners in the district pay a portion of their property taxes to the district.

The owner of a median-priced home in Southeast King County pays $213.58 a year to the hospital district.

Residents from outside of the hospital district are welcome to use hospital services.

Sen. Pam Roach, R-Auburn, who fought against the medical center's unsuccessful attempt to annex part of Southeast King County in 2006, including part of Maple Valley and Enumclaw, says it would be difficult to disband the hospital district altogether. But she says that urban hospital districts should reevaluate what they do and how they use tax money.

"[Valley Medical Center] is at a crossroads," Roach said.

Others say it should be up to the market to decide whether a public hospital district should exist in dense communities.

"It's a market failure when we step in," said Anthony Hemstad, who was elected board commissioner in the November general election.

The need for a hospital district in truly rural areas is clear, but in Southeast King County, it's harder to see any benefits, Hemstad said.

McCollum agreed. "Hospital districts are absolutely necessary in rural areas, and Valley was in a rural area 40 years ago," McCollum said. "I don't think you could form a hospital district there today."

Karen Johnson: 253-234-8605 or karenjohnson@seattletimes.com