UMC-El Paso Children’s Hospital financial committee hits roadblock, dissolves

The initial plan to come up with solutions to deal with the El Paso Children’s Hospital’s multimillion dollar debt to University Medical Center has hit a roadblock.

The special financial committee between Children’s, UMC and El Paso First is no more.

“The parties were unable to move forward, to reach consensus on any kind of path forward,” said UMC spokeswoman Margaret Althoff-Olivas. “That doesn’t mean that it can’t be reconvened but at this point it has been suspended.”

The chairman dissolved it after only three meetings because they couldn’t find a solution. Now the Children’s Hospital owes University Medical Center $68 million and the debt grows every month by $2.5 million. That’s causing a big hole in UMC’s budget. UMC has not been able to say how this will impact taxpayers.

After a closed meeting of nearly three hours, UMC voted Tuesday to bring on international law firm Norton Rose Fullbright, which deals with hospital transactions and the healthcare industry, to help them figure what to do. UMC officials could not tell us how much they will be paying the firm.

Now the board is working on a proposal for Children’s Hospital. ABC-7 asked what will be in the letter, but they aren’t making that public yet.

They will take up the issue again Friday during a special meeting at 1 p.m.

ABC-7 also learned Children’s Hospital proposed that there be a confidentiality agreement between them and UMC. ABC-7 and El Paso’s Press Club came out against it, saying the taxpayers have a right to know what happens between the two hospitals.

The UMC board agreed and voted against it.