Time Is Latest Hurdle for King/Drew

A consulting firm has cast doubt on one of the favored options for fixing troubled Martin Luther King Jr./Drew Medical Center -- turning it over to a private company.

A majority of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors had expressed support for the idea in recent weeks, but a report by Shattuck Hammond Partners said it would take six to 12 months to determine whether such an arrangement was feasible and, if so, to find the right partner.

That leaves the supervisors with some difficult choices when they meet next month to decide King/Drew’s fate. Besides pursuing the option of turning over the public hospital to a private provider, they could close it temporarily, downsize it, sever ties to its affiliated medical school or leave it as is.

“My one problem is that I feel that we don’t have six months to 12 months” to look into a hand-off, said Supervisor Don Knabe. “Time is running out.... I think it’s a lot more complicated than anybody anticipated.”

Even as the supervisors deliberate, the choice may be taken out of the county’s hands. Health inspectors continue to investigate questionable deaths and other lapses in patient care, part of a troubling pattern that has lasted for years and has yet to abate.

The hospital, which is south of Watts, remains out of compliance with rules governing participation in the federal Medicare program, and federal officials could cut off $200 million in funding if they determine the hospital has not improved quickly enough.

Since November, King/Drew has been run by Navigant Consulting Inc., an outside firm that is being paid $15 million under a one-year contract.

In a 13-page report, Shattuck Hammond said it would be “impossible” to determine by next month’s meeting the feasibility of permanently turning over the hospital.

Before any decision can be made, the consultants said, the county has to decide what medical services would be offered at King/Drew, what would happen to the staff if a different operator took over and what financial guarantees the county would be willing to offer its new partner.

The county also would have to decide whether to transfer ownership of the hospital, enter into a long-term lease or simply have a private firm operate it as part of the county hospital system.

Representatives of Shattuck Hammond held “very preliminary conversations” with potential candidates Catholic Healthcare West and Daughters of Charity Health System, parent company of St. Francis Medical Center in Lynwood, the report said.

“Based on our discussions, we believe the proposed contract arrangement will have to insulate” any partner from financial losses incurred from running King/Drew, the report said.

Susan Whitten, a vice president of Catholic Healthcare West, said Tuesday that her firm was interested in preserving the safety net for poor patients in Los Angeles County but would need a lot of answers before deciding whether it was willing to take over King/Drew.

A spokeswoman for St. Francis did not return telephone calls seeking comment.

Shattuck Hammond’s report comes two months after Knabe and Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky called for a study of whether the county could turn over the hospital. At the time, Yaroslavsky said he wanted to be in a position to implement an alternative plan for running King/Drew before the expiration of Navigant’s contract at the end of October if the hospital did not improve.

But on Tuesday he said: “There’s no short-term solution for King/Drew.... Any option we undertake is going to take time.”

Supervisor Yvonne Brathwaite Burke, whose district includes the hospital, said the report confirms her skepticism about turning over the hospital to a private provider.

But Supervisor Mike Antonovich said the county should push ahead, regardless of how long it takes.