Mississippi County Voters Head To Polls For Hospital Sales Tax

Supporters of a proposed half-cent sales tax to help the two hospitals in Mississippi County are cautiously optimistic about the tax’s fate, the chairman of a committee pushing for its passage said Friday.

Dr. Jim Shemwell said he has spoken to several area civic groups about the tax, which will go before the voters Tuesday.

If approved, the half-cent sales tax, which would raise $12 million over the next five years, will help bring in revenue for the Great River Medical Center in Blytheville and the South Mississippi County Regional Medical Center in Osceola.

Of the $12 million, Shemwell said $3 million would be used to repair facilities, $5 million would go toward purchasing new equipment, $2 million would go toward physician recruitment and $2 million would go to a contingency fund to deal with anticipated reductions in the reimbursement rate for rural hospitals from the Affordable Care Act.

Shemwell said there has been some debate over closing one of the hospitals or building a new county hospital to help with the overall issue.

However, he said neither one would be practical.

The Osceola hospital serves as a critical care facility in the county, which leads to better reimbursement rates. The Blytheville hospital also has a larger volume of patients, making the closing of that hospital difficult, Shemwell said.

In addition to serving people in Mississippi County, the Osceola hospital receives patients from northern Crittenden and eastern Poinsett counties.

The Blytheville hospital also receives patients from southeast Missouri, Shemwell said.

If approved, the tax would be collected starting Jan. 1 and through Jan. 1, 2019.