Memorial Hospital Lease Details Released

The city of Colorado Springs has released information about how much Memorial Hospital could be worth to the city if a lease agreement with University Health System is approved by voters.

On Friday, the city made the potential lease agreement public. It’s a $1.9 billion deal with the city receiving $259 million initially and $168 million annually. The city stresses that the quality of health care will only improve with University at the helm. The agreement includes University money for capital improvements and a new medical school at University of Colorado Colorado Springs.

Mayor Steve Bach is excited by the agreement but insists an oversight board is needed to control the money.

City Councilwoman Lisa Czelatdko was initially critical of the mayor’s ultimatum. On her Facebook page, she compared it to extortion, but that comment has since been removed. Czelatdko said her opposition was to the original statement released by Mayor Bach indicating he would “threaten to actively oppose the lease.” The city councilwoman said she does not have a problem with the mayor’s revised stance.

The city of Colorado Springs wants feedback on the agreement. It has set up links to the agreement and integration details on its website. Residents can email the city or address it in person Tuesday following a public presentation of the agreement.

Voters may have an opportunity to decide on the agreement in August.

Below is Bach’s official statement on the agreement:

“The proposed lease of Memorial Health System to the University of Colorado Health System, as summarized by our City Attorney’s Office today, is a grand slam opportunity for our community. The agreement offers a combination of benefits including receiving a higher level of quality care and fair compensation for our investment and tenure with the hospital. Also, current Memorial Health System employee jobs will be maintained and our obligations to patients in need will be fulfilled.

“The additional opportunity of having a branch of the University of Colorado Medical Center at the UCCS campus, as well as having local control with seven of the eleven seats of the new board being residents of El Paso County, are pluses.

“The one remaining key element will be finalization of a plan to segregate and carefully manage the lease proceeds from this transaction. It will be important that there is joint City Council/Mayor oversight of this plan. There are discussions ongoing between the City Council Task Force and me on how to best do that. I look forward to these discussions resulting, in the very near future, in a formal agreement between City Council and myself that we will then present to the public.”