Guest Comment
Want hospital to stay in Easton? Get involved now
By THOMAS G. DUNCAN
Special to the Star Democrat
Published: Wednesday, October 1, 2008 4:48 AM CDT

This is an appeal to community leaders and citizens to step up to be counted in what I consider to be the single greatest economic, quality-of-life, and health-and-safety issue I have encountered during almost 25 years as an elected official in Talbot County.

This is the potential move of Memorial Hospital away from Easton or its immediate area. The Talbot County Council has been told that hospital officials will announce the result of the close-hold deliberations on this matter early next year. In the meantime I don't understand why so many of those who should be concerned with this vital issue are taking a neutral "let it happen" as opposed to the needed and active "make it happen" posture.

The "make it happen" position is on the move in Queen Anne's County. On Tuesday evening, Sept. 16, another piece fell into place in what seems to be a well-orchestrated plan to move the hospital away from Easton. This was a recommendation approved by a Citizens Advisory Committee in Queen Anne's County to rezone more than 500 acres just outside Talbot County immediately north of Route 404 and east of U.S. 50 for "medical uses, including a hospital."

The Talbot County Council has allocated about 250 acres near the Community Center just north of Easton for a new hospital complex, with the Town of Easton providing water and sewer service. The following additional steps have been taken to encourage the new hospital being located in the immediate Easton area:

• The Talbot County Council commissioned a study by Sage Policy Group which found that if the new hospital is located at the northern end of the county (or across the line in Queen Anne's County) the loss to Easton's economy would be stunning. Just for starters, we would probably lose most of our 2,700 health care jobs with $105 million annual salary. Easton Utilities alone would lose $2.3 million in annual revenue.
• More than 10,000 citizens signed a petition to the Talbot County Council which insisted that the new Memorial Hospital be sited in or near Easton.
• Talbot County Council members have met with Gov. Martin O'Malley, Comptroller Peter Franchot, Planning Secretary Rich Hall, and many other state officials, all of whom expressed firm support for keeping the hospital in Easton.
• Sen. Rich Colburn and I have met about the hospital with the town councils or commissions of St. Michaels, Oxford, and Trappe in Talbot County, and Federalsburg and Preston in Caroline County. All of these municipalities subsequently wrote the governor, the University of Maryland Medical System, Memorial Hospital and The Star Democrat to express their support for a hospital in or near Easton. On Oct. 20, we are scheduled to see the Easton Town Council which has already been writing letters and otherwise taking a central role in hospital retention efforts.

So who is missing from the list above and what should be done now? The following are a series of steps that I respectfully offer for public consideration:

1. The Talbot County Chamber of Commerce should issue a clear-cut expression of support for keeping the hospital in or near Easton and get its members actively involved in advocacy toward this end. With offices in Easton, this is supposed to be the Talbot County Chamber of Commerce, not the Eastern Shore or Mid-Shore or Queen Anne's County Chamber. After conducting a bogus membership survey with loaded questions, our Chamber issued an expression of neutrality on hospital location. How can they do this with the potential for closed businesses, lost jobs, and devastating public and private financial disaster that hospital movement would entail? Citizens should ask chamber leaders and members these questions and refuse to continue to accept evasive answers.
2. Where do Delegates Addie Eckardt and Jeannie Haddaway stand? We see their photos at every small business opening, but don't they understand the economic impact and health care implications of hospital movement away from Easton? Their districts don't include Queen Anne's County, so why do they seem to be avoiding the fray? Citizens who care should be writing or calling them.
3. What additional steps are being taken by the governments of Easton, St. Michaels, Oxford and Trappe in Talbot County, and other towns in neighboring counties, to keep the hospital near its present central location? Encourage your town council or commission members to continue their fight to keep the hospital in Easton.
4. The Memorial Hospital is part of Shore Health System, which itself is now part of the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS). Talbot has hundreds and possibly thousands of graduates of the various branches of the University of Maryland. They should write to the UMMS or the president of their campus expressing outrage about the possibility of the hospital being moved away from Easton.
5. And how about the distinguished citizens of Talbot County who occupy all-important positions as members of the boards and committees of Shore Health System and UMMS that are considering the issue of hospital relocation? I am compiling their names and contact information, plus instructions on how to reach other key officials, all of which will be published soon. These people are your representatives on these public bodies; get in touch with them and let them know what you think.

This is huge. In fact, hospital location is nothing less than a matter of life-or-death for Talbot County's aging population, our numerous independent healthcare and eldercare facilities, and for the residents of remote parts of the county. The outcome of the ongoing private deliberations on the hospital's future will have a profound effect on you and your family for decades to come. We must do everything in our power to keep the hospital where it can best serve the present and future residents of the Mid-Shore area, including Talbot County.

It's time to pull out all the stops. The action agenda above is in no way all-inclusive. Send your additional suggestions to me or other Talbot County Council members. Get moving, get involved, make it happen!

Thomas G. Duncan is a member of the Talbot County Council. He writes from Easton.