Crittenden County Hospital Sales Tax Passes

A plan to reopen Crittenden Regional Hospital in West Memphis received an overwhelming okay Tuesday by county voters.

The five-year, one-cent sales tax was approved by a 2,888 to 444 margin, or 86.7% to 13.3% vote, Crittenden County Election Commission chairman Dixie Carlson said Wednesday.

Carlson said the turnout for the election was good, with nearly 1,100 people casting early votes at the courthouse in Marion.

In the lead up to the election, supporters of the tax hosted a series of meetings around the county before the election to talk with voters about the issue.

The hospital’s then-board closed Crittenden Regional Hospital on Sept. 7, 2014 after financial problems surfaced.

FUTURE
County officials have been working with a Tennessee-based company, AMERIS Health, to set up a plan to operate the hospital.

Crittenden County Judge Woody Wheeless said last month that the company was willing to provide at least $15 million into the operations of the hospital. Also, Wheeless said the tax is expected to bring in about $30 million in revenue as well.

The county also benefits from having two of the most heavily traveled highways in the country – I-55 and I-40 – running through the county with the interstates intersecting at West Memphis.

The passage of the tax also sets a 2.75% county sales tax in Crittenden County, as well as an overall 9.75% rate in West Memphis and a 10.25% rate in nearby Marion.

Officials are hoping for a Dec. 1 launch date for the hospital.

The election will be certified at 9 a.m. Friday at the Election Commission building in Marion, next to the courthouse, Carlson said.