Bills that would give more power to Broward health districts are going nowhere — this year

Yahoo

23-04-2025

With less than two weeks left in Florida's Legislative session, proposed bills that would have given sweeping new powers to Broward County's public health districts have no chance of advancing.
The bills would have allowed Broward County's two taxpayer-supported hospital districts — Broward Health and Memorial Healthcare System — to go into a for-profit or not-for-profit business together without fear of violating state or federal antitrust laws.
Neither the House version (HB 1253) nor the Senate version (SB 1518) of the health district bills were heard by a committee, which is required before they can move to the full House and Senate for debate and a vote. Only a bill that passes both chambers is sent to the Governor for consideration.
In Tallahassee and Broward County, the bills had strong opposition. Close to 1,800 Memorial Healthcare System employees, physicians, and residents signed an online petition expressing their objection. Additionally, competitor HCA Florida, which has five hospitals in Broward County, hired a lobbyist in Tallahassee to oppose the proposed bills.
The health districts had lobbyists pushing for the bills, including Ron Book, who said the bills are needed so the Broward health districts can compete in the changing marketplace. On Wednesday, Book said, 'The bills are largely not in play right now, but nothing is dead until it's dead. Sometimes it takes more than one session to pass something.'
Added Book: 'The enemy of Broward taxpayers is HCA. They think they should be the only ones who have the ability to compete, irrespective of the quality of healthcare the two districts provide, and regardless of people's ability to pay. The districts are the most complete providers of healthcare in the community and when do not allow them to compete together, you've done nothing but hurt the community, and that is what HCA is doing.'
Broward is the only county in Florida with two public health districts and a mandate to care for all patients regardless of their ability to pay. Within the county, Broward Health's district is roughly north of Griffin Road and Memorial's is south.
Sen. Bryan Avila, R-Hialeah, who sponsored the Senate version of the health district bill, claims circumstances, not politics, are to blame for its failure in the 2025 session.
'It's the legislative process,' Avila said. 'I was activated for the presidential support mission in D.C., so I was away for a little bit. You also had the week that (Tallahassee) was snowed in. A lot of things got kind of jammed up … Typically legislation takes anywhere from three to four years.'
'I think just having that initial conversation is a step forward, and next year we'll take another step forward,' he said.
Rep. Hillary Cassel, R-Dania Beach, who sponsored the House version, did not respond to a request for comment. Cassel previously told the South Florida Sun Sentinel that she introduced the House bill after conversations with leadership at Broward's health systems, considering it a way to allow the safety-net hospitals that serve disadvantaged communities to be more innovative and collaborative.
However, the board chairs of both the North Broward Hospital District (Broward Health) and the South Broward Hospital District (Memorial Healthcare System) told the South Florida Sun Sentinel they had not read the bills before they were proposed and were not fully aware of the intent.
The bills have sparked a furor among Memorial employees, in part because they surfaced soon after a round of layoffs and demotions. An online petition at change.org to stop the bills titled 'Say NO to HB 1253 / SB 1518' has been signed by close to 1,800 people, many fearful of losing their jobs. The petition asserts that the bills would give Shane Strum 'unchecked authority' and allow him 'to transform a public healthcare system into a corporate machine.'
Seven months ago, Strum, CEO of Broward Health, became the interim CEO of Memorial. His short tenure at the helm of Memorial has been tumultuous, with directors demoted, employees laid off, physician contracts shortened and a new performance plan initiated. Employees claim that Strum is dismantling the health system and eroding morale.
One of those firings has led to a lawsuit. Dr. Aharon Sareli, Memorial Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer, whom Strum terminated in February, has sued Memorial Healthcare System for breach of contract, unilaterally eliminating his position, duties and compensation and not providing the agreed-upon severance. The health system's attorneys have not yet responded to the lawsuit, but Memorial Board Chair Elizabeth Justen said Sareli had resigned.
Justen has repeatedly said Strum is carrying out the board's directive to eliminate redundancies and make Memorial more efficient. 'That's what well-run companies do,' she said.
'People get comfortable, and they were comfortable with us not moving forward,' she said. 'It is our job to look to the future and to see where we go next, and we are trying to do it as transparently as we can.'
Justen said the bills' failure does not prevent collaboration. 'It will not stop us from doing what we already have in our charter,' she said. 'We're going to continue working together with Broward Health. We are going to move forward with everything we can do together.'
Employees express fear that Strum wants to merge the two independent, long-standing, publicly funded health systems.
For decades, Memorial has been financially stable and operated without competition, unlike Broward Health, which has significant competition and has struggled financially, Memorial employees say. In their petition, they note that Memorial just had its best year in its financial history.
In an opinion piece for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, Strum defended the proposed bills and his goals. 'Legislative proposals being discussed in Tallahassee don't merge our systems; that would require a lengthy public process. Instead, they expand what we're already doing, which is working together to stretch resources further,' he wrote. 'At Memorial, we've trimmed redundancies, affecting 0.5% of our 17,500-strong team, while protecting physician roles and adding new facilities. Growth, not cuts, defines our path.'
Steve Sampier, a retired community services director for Memorial Healthcare System, said the proposed bills would have met with less resistance locally if Strum was not leading both health systems.
'It's hard for one person to be loyal to both systems at the same time,' Sampier said. 'Memorial and Broward Health already have partnerships, and if they want to do more, bring in a healthcare professional to be CEO of Memorial with expertise in partnerships. Then it might make sense, but this looks like a political game.'
South Florida Sun Sentinel writer Steve Bousquet contributed to this report.
Do you have comments or insights on Memorial Healthcare System or Broward Health? Contact South Florida Sun Sentinel health reporter Cindy Goodman at [e-mail] or 954-304-5908.