MADISON COUNTY, Texas — A Madison County proposition is calling on voters to decide on approving a hospital district in the area. The existing hospital in Madison County has served the community for many decades through several needs. However, the hospital provider, St. Joseph Health, said in a statement to KAGS News there are issues the facility is facing.
“St. Joseph Health has provided compassionate, quality care to the Madison County community for over 25 years, and it is our hope to continue serving the community’s health care needs. The current hospital facility is over 70 years old and is facing numerous significant challenges including flooding, failing physical plant, moisture-related issues, a failing foundation, among many more. St. Joseph Health has been and remains a neutral party in this initiative. It is our sincere hope that the residents of Madison County have access to quality, accessible health care."
The proposition calls for the creation of a hospital district costing $33 million at $0.25 for each $100 valuation through property taxes from people living in the area. The ballot measure started up after some of the residents said they started to take notice of the problems inside the existing facility.
William Bennett has been associated with the hospital since the mid-90’s and he said he wanted to start a petition and find out who in the county would be behind the idea of improving the existing hospital.
“We just took it around and asked people if they supported it, would they sign it," Bennett said. "That’s kind of the way it was put out in the community."
Bennett said he gathered around 300 signatures from people in the area before presenting the petition before the county commissioners. Bennett said he wanted the measure placed on the ballot so those who lived in the county would have a chance to vote on it in the upcoming elections on Nov. 2.
But not everyone is on board with how the measure got on the ballot. Tyrann Bodiford, who lives in Madison County, said she wanted more notice before the proposition moved forward on the ballot. She wanted voters to have a better picture about what the measure was about and what the cost would be to voters.
“You need to have a public hearing. There was no public hearing prior to putting it on the ballot,” said Bodiford. "The only way some folks have found out about it, a lot of it's word of mouth, social media."
Shortly after the proposition was placed on the ballot, a Facebook Page, called MCHD was created as a way to reach out to voters. There were several town hall meetings that were held to help people understand the proposition, or voice their concerns. However, if a voter was unaware of the Facebook page, it would make it harder for the voter to know about the information.
Bodiford doesn't dispute there was a kind of forum. However, she is concerned about the timing of those information meetings. "There was a couple of town hall meetings after the fact and that was October 19th and October 25th. So it was a little upsetting that there was no public hearing prior to."
Voters decide on the proposition Tuesday.