Did you know that citizens can form a public hospital district (PHD) to fill unmet health care needs in their communities? Most people don’t know that—even when they live in an area that has a PHD.
What is a Public Hospital District? It is a special services district (think your library or fire department) organized to assure that a community has access to the services it deems necessary or desires. It is formed by a vote of the people, governed by elected officials and paid for in part by property taxes like any other special service district, so the community has a vote on decisions made and on who makes those decisions. Typically the taxes required are similar to the other districts, because insurance, Medicaid and Medicare pay most of the costs.
PHDs are not just hospital providers. They can offer Emergency Management Services (EMS), hospice, palliative care, behavioral health and much more —and in fact, many do not even have a hospital. Look at this map to see if one of the 58 PHDs is in your area and links to what each PHD provides.
As hospital mergers become commonplace, especially in rural and medically underserved areas where healthcare is often paid for by Medicare and Medicaid, and fewer secular healthcare options are available, the role of PHDs in filling gaps in needed healthcare services such as end of life options and full reproductive healthcare may be seen as increasingly attractive.
There is now a webinar, PHD 101, that is available to local Leagues and the public, that explains what PHDs are and gives examples of what they do and how. It explores all aspects of PHDs to adequately inform people who are interested and to support League members feeling comfortable providing education for other League and community members.
You can view this webinar at one of the presentations scheduled this summer. At each of these, there will be a League team to answer questions.
- Saturday, September 9, Health Care Affinity Group, 1:00 pm
For more information, see League of Women Voters of Washington—Public Hospital Districts: Making Democracy Work for Local Healthcare.
