The city of Louisville, Ky., is withholding a payment of $803,000 intended to fund charity care at University Hospital because some council members are concerned about the hospital's proposed merger, according to a Courier-Journal report.
Four members on the council's budget committee voted to table the money on Monday due to University Hospital's pending merger with Jewish Hospital & St. Mary's HealthCare in Louisville and St. Joseph Health System in Lexington, Ky., which is owned by Denver-based Catholic Health Initiatives.
The council members, all four of which are Democrats, wanted to suspend the city's payment until it's clarified whether the merged Catholic system will provide reproductive services, health benefits for LGBT employees and visitation rights for domestic partners.
One council member said withholding the payment is a "small way the council can insert itself with a tiny bit of money to leverage and get some of those answers," according to the report. Republican council members oppose the move and are trying to obtain signatures to force a new vote on the matter.
The city provides roughly $9.6 million for charity care at the hospital each year in monthly payments and receives $2.6 million of that total amount back at the end of each fiscal year.
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Four members on the council's budget committee voted to table the money on Monday due to University Hospital's pending merger with Jewish Hospital & St. Mary's HealthCare in Louisville and St. Joseph Health System in Lexington, Ky., which is owned by Denver-based Catholic Health Initiatives.
The council members, all four of which are Democrats, wanted to suspend the city's payment until it's clarified whether the merged Catholic system will provide reproductive services, health benefits for LGBT employees and visitation rights for domestic partners.
One council member said withholding the payment is a "small way the council can insert itself with a tiny bit of money to leverage and get some of those answers," according to the report. Republican council members oppose the move and are trying to obtain signatures to force a new vote on the matter.
The city provides roughly $9.6 million for charity care at the hospital each year in monthly payments and receives $2.6 million of that total amount back at the end of each fiscal year.
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