Lawmakers seek funds to keep hospital afloat

The House of Representatives unanimously passed a resolution Tuesday urging the governor to bail out struggling Wahiawa General Hospital, which is warning that it could shut down in six months if the state doesn’t step in.

The hospital and its supporters are appealing to the Legislature for $6 million over two years — or $3 million annually — to keep the private, nonprofit facility afloat.

“I’m not joking. If we don’t get the support funding, we think the hospital is in danger of closing in six to nine months. We’re not just trying to scare people,” said Don Olden, Wahiawa’s chief executive officer, who’s been battling revenue shortfalls since the Queen’s Medical Center-West opened in 2014. “It’s been a problem for the last two years.”

The hospital, which has more than 600 full- and part-time employees and is the largest private employer in Wahiawa, has had to cut staff in recent years by the equivalent of about 75 employees. More than 7,000 people have signed a petition of support for the hospital.

“We want to bring the governor into this discussion so he understands the importance of the funding but also the release of the funds,” said Rep. Marcus Oshiro (D, Wahiawa-Whitmore-Poamoho), adding that Gov. David Ige could request more money from the the Legislature to fund the hospitals. “It’s self-evident and compelling that we need to have $3 million for the hospital to survive so that we can even begin to discuss repurposing or partnering or a new business model. We learned from Hawaii Medical Centers (formerly St. Francis Medical Centers) back in 2012, it was catastrophic for the entire system and people’s lives would be affected by it.”

An Ige spokeswoman declined comment.

House Concurrent Resolution 118 and House Resolution 73 now go to the House Finance Committee. If approved there, they will go back to the full House and then the Senate for consideration.

“What’s significant is this is the first unanimous vote by the entire body, and it was all affirmative. There was no opposition,” Oshiro added. “The Wahiawa hospital has made a very compelling case for it to be supported by the state. We cannot allow Wahiawa General Hospital to fold.”

The hospital began in 1944 as an outpatient clinic for plantation workers, military personnel and rural Central Oahu residents, and it has grown into a 57-bed acute care hospital with an emergency room and a 107-bed, long-term care skilled-nursing facility.