New Wishard up for a vote in special election - 13 WTHR Indianapolis

Indianapolis - A special election in November will let voters decide if the city needs a new Wishard Hospital.

Those pushing the plan say it won't cost taxpayers a thing, but opponents say there's no guarantee. Volunteers went door-to-door Saturday, asking Marion County residents to vote "yes" to building the new hospital in the November 3 election.

"We really need a world-class hospital to serve all the citizens of Marion County and, most particularly, those who are underserved, those who desperately need these facilities," said Gary Price with the group Citizens for Wishard.

"It's the stuff behind the walls that's 40, 50, 60 years old," said Tom Ringham, Wishard Associate VP of Facilities.

Employees say it's outdated, the rooms are too small for modern day medical equipment and the infrastructure is crumbling.

"It means that you may wait longer in the emergency department, because we have two or three rooms shut down due to a water leak," Ringham said.

But attorney Gary Welsh warns to be careful what you vote for.

"The referendum language doesn't tell you they're going to use the money to build a new hospital, it doesn't tell you how much money they're going to borrow, it doesn't tell you how much money the hospital is going to cost, it doesn't tell you how they're going to repay it," he said.

The Health and Hospital Corporation estimates it will need to borrow about $630 million to build a new Wishard. They need voters' permission to take out the loans, because if they can't make the payments, voters will - in higher property taxes.

But they say that won't happen, that the hospital brings in more than enough money to cover the loan payments of $38 million a year.

"We currently have a surplus this year of $51 million," said Dan Sellers, CFO and Treasurer of the Health and Hospital Corporation.

"Who's to say it's not going to cost a billion and a half? Oftentimes, these public works projects balloon out of control," said Welsh. "We saw that with the Central Library project that wound up costing $150 million, the cost of Lucas Oil Stadium.

The Health and Hospital Corporation says it will take 30 years to pay off the loan. Welsh says a lot could happen to the hospital's revenue stream between now and then.

"If we adopt a national health insurance plan where everyone is insured, then people can go to any hospital they want. They don't have to go to a county hospital like Wishard that focuses on providing care to the indigent and uninsured," Welsh said.

"The idea of more people having coverage just brings more people with coverage to us," Sellers said.