License Holdup Delays Hospital Lease Transition

August 1, 2016 was to be the day the Tehachapi Valley Healthcare District turned over all of its assets and operations to Adventist Health in a 30-year lease agreement, but the state-run program that administers the Medi-Cal and Medicare programs has delayed in transferring the district's license.

Healthcare district CEO Eugene Suksi told the Aug. 3 meeting of the Greater Tehachapi Economic Development Council that the contractor Noridian still has the application, creating "a lull before the transfer of operations."

He anticipated completion of the license transfer by Aug. 13, but, he said, someone suggested that he might want to stop setting dates.

"Licensing is the last hurdle to close the transaction," Adventist spokesperson Jimmy Phillips said. "It allows us to fully run the facility [existing hospital]. We are keeping everything status quo until we move into the new facility [new hospital]."

At that time, the staff will increase by at least 50.

Suksi said that when the license comes through, operations will be transferred to coincide with the payroll cycle.

With the exception of four healthcare district administrative staff, including Suksi and CFO Chet Beadle, and several resignations/terminations 205 employees of the district are transitioning to work for their new corporate boss, Adventist Health Medical Center Tehachapi Valley. They have gone through the human resources process of submitting applications and Adventist officially has hired them. All the employees have been issued new ID badges, although they remain Tehachapi Valley Healthcare District employees until the license is issued and the transition is complete.

The employees will keep their years of service under their new employer. Adventist offered their own insurance, with Kaiser as an alternative. Physicals, drug tests and background checks were required.

Adventist held its welcome reception for the employees on Aug. 1 in the center court of the existing hospital on E street as planned.

"I'm excited about the possibility of growth in my position and migration to another location," said Dennis Patty, an 11-year employee of the district who works in IT.

"It [the transition] was a little scary," Patty said. "I am used to Tehachapi Hospital and how things run here."

He said that Adventist will be migrating some information technology but, he said, "The hospital is so old that implementing is hard to do." To create a network, he said, they would have to drill through eight inches of concrete.