Less than six months before he is scheduled to leave office, Cook County Board President Richard Phelan finally managed to push through the most ambitious campaign promise he made as a candidate in 1990-a new public hospital for Cook County.
The measure that was overwhelmingly approved Wednesday by the County Board still leaves much undone. But in winning approval of a resolution asking for state authorization of a new County Hospital, the board went further than it ever has toward building a facility that has been discussed for more than 50 years.
“This is very historic only because for so long it has been so controversial and for so long it has waited to be done,” Phelan said after the vote showing he could win approval of an expensive project even as a lame duck.
The approval of the measure, on a 14-3 bipartisan vote, came amid little opposition to a project that calls for construction of a 464-bed hospital at an estimated cost of $592 million. Inflation and the cost of financing are expected to increase the final price to nearly $1.5 billion.
But while opposition to the new hospital hasn’t been overwhelming, it has been ardent.
Three commissioners who have been the chief skeptics of the project were unmoved by arguments of the majority and cast the only votes against the project.
Two suburban Republicans, Carl Hansen and Richard Siebel, and a Chicago Democrat, Maria Pappas, all warned that the county was preparing to build what could prove to be an expensive white elephant. They said the board ought to wait until a national health care plan is formulated before proceeding on a new hospital.
“Let’s spend our money compassionately, but let’s spend it wisely,” said Siebel.
Some of the issues raised by the opponents are likely to become a focus of debate as the project moves from the decision makers in Chicago to those in Springfield at the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Board.
For one thing, the state board will consider the need for a new hospital in light of proposals for universal coverage that would guarantee access to health care.
In addition, Ray Paseri, secretary to the state panel, said the board will consider other issues as it decides on whether to issue what is technically called a certificate of need that is necessary before construction can begin. Among the issues, he said, is the condition of the current hospital and whether the county would be better off demolishing it and building a new hospital or renovating the structure.
The state panel will also consider the need for the new hospital in light of the other facilities that are already operating in the area. Opponents have argued that with thousands of hospital beds going unused throughout the county, the last thing needed is a new health facility.
The state board, which could render a decision as early as Sept. 8, will also consider the financial feasibility of the new hospital and whether the estimated costs are in line with other recent projects.
Any delays in the process would eliminate political headaches for Gov. Jim Edgar, who appoints the state panel. A decision against the project could hurt a governor already hampered by allegations that he is anti-Chicago. A decision for the project, however, could put him at odds with his party’s candidate for Cook County Board president, Joseph Morris, who opposes construction of a new hospital.
Although the new hospital would be the most expensive construction project ever undertaken by the county, Phelan contended Wednesday that at most, city and suburban homeowners might see a “slight blip” in their property tax bills. But he said no major tax increase will be needed for the project.
