Williamson County Refuses Hospital Sale Study

FRANKLIN, TN — The Williamson County Commission declined to create a task force to study the sale of the county-owned Williamson Medical Center Monday. The proposal had been mooted as an idea to fund schools and other growth projects without a tax increase, but critics suggested state law might prevent such a use of the profits.

The commission voted 16-7 against creating a task force that would examine the feasibility of selling WMC, consistently ranked among Middle Tennessee's best public hospitals. (For more updates on this story and free news alerts for your neighborhood, sign up for your local Middle Tennessee Patch morning newsletter.)

At issue was a state law that requires proceeds from the sale of a county-owned hospital to be used for "health purposes," though the language in the law is vague and commissioners wondered if using the revenue for employee health insurance costs — a nearly $50 million line item in the budget — would satisfy the requirement.

"What we need to do is have an adult conversation based on facts — something we've never done in this body," Commissioner Todd Kaestner said, according to The Tennessean. "We don't know anything about the restrictions, just things we've heard other people say at some point."

In any event, the county won't be studying the sale now, even as supporters of the proposal argued that transitioning WMC to a private operator would have little to no effect on Williamson County residents who rely on the facility.

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