SAN ANTONIO — A a major southside staple will close their doors on Monday, May 1, and it is closing for good. The move is worrying residents about the impact on healthcare.
Meanwhile, District Four City Councilwoman Dr. Adriana Rocha Garcia is calling for an investigation at the state and federal level.
“I am really worried,” she said.
The city leader said she is saddened by the closure because it is going to have a real impact on the people.
Now, with the closure happening and recent reporting from CBS News surrounding the shutdown; the councilwoman is demanding answers and she isn’t alone.
“My worst fear is that there is a mass shooting of some sort and those are less beds we have now accessible to folks on the southside,” she said. “This is more than just a neighborhood hospital,” she said. “This takes care almost half of San Antonio.”
She is calling on state and federal leaders to investigate how this shutdown could have happened.
“I am hoping to know what went wrong,” the councilwoman said. “When someone had information, they could have elevated any type of practices going unnoticed that somebody could have stepped in to help.”
Her opponent aiming to take her council seat, Gregorio De La Paz, agrees with this call to action.
“I am saddened by it, he said. “I think an investigation is warranted to check the facts to make sure everybody is on the up and up. You need to be transparent.”
The hospital’s parent company: Steward Health Care Network sent the following information to KENS 5:
• The lease payment to MPT on the TVMC hospital is $5 million a year. That represents 3% of the annual operating budget and was absolutely not a factor in the decision to close the hospital. (This is irrelevant compared to the 25% of care delivered that goes uncompensated.)
• Steward, by the terms of its master lease, will still pay the rent and taxes even if the hospital is closed.
• Twenty-five percent of the patients treated at TVMC do not pay for their care. Without Steward’s commitment, TVMC would have closed years ago. As a physician-led company, Steward has been very reluctant to close TVMC and stayed the course throughout the pandemic. Steward sought partners and many avenues to avoid closing TVMC. However, in the absence of much needed and denied assistance from Bexar County, Steward can no longer keep it open. Very few companies can give away 25% of its product and remain viable.
Linda Pearson is the interim CEO of Southside First Economic Development Council. She said she was stunned when she heard the news.
“Oh my, she said. “If a hospital is closing down, what are we doing to do about healthcare.” This is a large region. So, now if people need to use the hospital they are having to go farther. Some of them don’t have transportation.”
The councilwoman said a short-term goal is to come up with a PSA or plan to let residents know what their options are going to be now moving forward. The nearest hospital is going to be a commute like 10-to-15 minutes away.
The other aspect are the people who worked at Texas Vista Medical Center, more than 800 of them are landing new jobs or looking for a new one.
Southside First is hoping to connect with them soon to offer any help.