Letter: The silver lining in HCA’s business model?

Graphic by Lori Deaton

In a recent news release, Asheville was rated first in the nation in the ratio of individuals moving into the community versus those moving out. For every 100 people leaving Asheville, 301 people moved into our community. Compared with other cities in the United States, Asheville is seen as a good place to live. Many people support this vibrant growth.

At the same time, there is a significant percentage of our population who thinks that Asheville and the surrounding area is growing too fast and that the rate of growth needs to be curtailed. Those who support this viewpoint are frustrated because there is nothing any given individual can do to alter the inflow of people.

Paradoxically, they have a large corporate entity that is doing what it can to alter this rapid growth and has their backs. That corporation is HCA. They are working diligently to decrease the quality of medical care in our area. Quality medical services is one of the top priorities when individuals are considering a place to live.

Under the previous model, Mission Hospital was a major drawing card in attracting people to our community. The slow-growth or no-growth citizens would be wise to contact HCA/Mission administration and let them know how much they appreciate their successful efforts to degrade medical care in our community, thereby causing individuals who are thinking of moving here to select another location.

Unfortunately, all of us who currently live here experience the fragility of the HCA business model when it comes to our health care. It’s both a terrible and tragic price to pay.

— Richard Boyum
Candler

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6 thoughts on “Letter: The silver lining in HCA’s business model?

  1. kw

    If only the TDA would advertise the truth about HCA! And perhaps include certain facts about our skeletal police force and water system failures…

  2. WestworldEmployee7

    I just had major surgery at Mission and left as soon as I could as I did not feel safe there.

    Everyone was a contractor that had just started that week. No one knew anyone else or where anything was located. Some of the younger staff had trouble using the computer systems as they had not reeived adequate raining! There were no supplies and the food was heinous. They kept offering me sweet tea and chocolate cake! Why is that crap even on the menu when most Americans are overweight and diabetic?

    It was a miserable experience – one I hope to avoid in the future. I was forced to go there as my oncologist is a member of the Hope Center, a Mission partner.

  3. Bright

    I also had a dangerous and miserable experience at Mission “Hospital.” It was so bad that I have had to be in counseling for over two years from the traumatic experience at that butcher shop. TDA needs to be examined for the reason they are supporting a dangerous situation at Mission. What are they getting out of covering up all the crap that is going on in Asheville to jeopardize its citizens???

    • indy499

      LOL. Good one. That 2 year trauma counseling trumps all those other wimpy wah wah stories

  4. Michael Hopping

    Rising prospects for poor medical outcomes and patient bankruptcies should have the added benefit of easing our housing shortage.

  5. Robby Robinson, MD, retired.

    I’ve said it before. It would be very interesting to do a deep dive and follow all
    the money that was involved in the HCA/Mission “deal.” Something just doesn’t smell good about the whole mess.

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