ALAMEDA COUNTY: Board of Trustees Will Take Over County Medical System
Management of Alameda County's $300 million medical system will fall on a new 11-member board of trustees starting July 1, the Fremont Argus reports. The plan to have Alameda County supervisors turn over daily operations of the county's three hospitals and five clinics to a governing board has been in the works for two years. Eight "health care professionals, lawyers and business executives," the medical system's CEO, a staff-appointed physician and one still- unnamed member of the Latino community will serve on the new board -- the first of its kind in the state. Assistant County Administrator Donna Linton said the "idea behind the move is to allow the hospitals to be run by people with 'specific expertise in health care,'" the Argus reports. The board will hold monthly public meetings. However, Board of Supervisors President Keith Carlson noted, "The board (of supervisors) still will have the ultimate responsibility to oversee the budget." The management change required passage of a county-specific state law last year. Other "counties are waiting to see whether the approach could work elsewhere," the Argus reports (Horowitz, 5/20).
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