S.R.H.S. Agrees to Independent Review by Jackson Co.
The review is expected to take 90 days or less, and during that time, the county owned hospital will continue to pay retirees there full benefits, but it will not deduct 3% from the paychecks of current employees. Also, the hospital will appoint an interim trustee to oversee the pension plan during the review. Troy Ross, Jackson County Supervisor for District 4, says, “The hospital has been fairly open with us and given us everything they thought they needed to, but now we’ve got a document in place that will allow us an authority to make sure we’ve got it.”
For many current and former hospital employees, this review couldn’t come fast enough. Sparks flew Monday at the Jackson County Board of Supervisors meeting as residents demanded more transparency from the supervisors. Gail Smith worked at Singing River for 21 years, and now, she’s furious by what she considers hypocrisy on the part of the health system. Smith says, “We were held to a sense of ownership, a sense of responsibility, and a sense of accountability. Those have been violated. I didn’t work 21 years there just to throw my money away.”
Supervisors contend they are doing the best they can, and in their memorandum, they vow to conduct a thorough review of the hospital. Ross also says, “We don’t have all the answers right now, but we’re working to get them. Like I said, we’re gonna’ kick every rock. If we see a rock out there, we’re kicking it over and we’re looking underneath it.”
The review period will go into effect Tuesday morning after an official press conference at the county service complex.
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