Hospital Would Face Burden If Question 1 Passes: Mayor

MELROSE, MA — Mayor Gail Infurna said community hospitals could face an increased financial burden if Question 1 were to pass in the November ballot. Infurna was among six mayors from across Massachusetts asking their counterparts to oppose the question, which proposes a maximum number of patients per registered nurse in hospitals and other health care facilities.

The letter was also written by Mayors Paul Heroux of Attleboro, Robert Hedlund of Weymouth, Jon Mitchell of New Bedford, Donna Holaday of Newburyport and Mark Hawke of Gardner.

The mayors say that if Question 1 were to pass, then some community hospitals would collapse under the burden of increased costs. The letter followed with, "Each of our five cities hosts a hospital that is a key contributor to the community, as well as a major employer."

Melrose-Wakefield would be such a hospital in Melrose.

"We need to advocate for a patient's safety," Infurna told Patch. "This ballot question as proposed is not the answer. It would put a burden on community hospitals, and our community hospital is an asset to our residents as well as partner to our community."

Proponents of the question say it would improve patient care by limiting wait times and increasing the likelihood that patients would be seen, but the letter went on to say the opposite would be true.

"To underscore the negative impact on our municipal operations, consider what would happen if an emergency department reaches its full legal allowance of patients for the number of nurses on duty," the letter said. "Under the new law, a hospital would not be able to admit any more patients, forcing walks-ins and ambulances to search for another hospital that could be more than 10-20 miles away; wasting valuable time in life-and-death situations. For communities with municipal ambulance services, this will be an added financial and resource burden for our public safety officials."

Subscribe to Melrose Patch for more local news and real-time alerts, and ‘like us’ on Facebook for more conversation!

Think you’ve got what it takes to be the Melrose Patch Mayor? Apply here!

Got a local news tip? Email mike.carraggi@patch.com.

Materials from the State House News Service were used in this report

Photo by Mike Carraggi, Patch