Pungo Hospital Update: 5/31/2014 | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Rural hospitals have been targeted lately because they are not profitable or big money makers, but they are necessary. This reality was recognized by the Federal Government with the creation of the Hill-Burton Act in the 1960's. In fact Pungo District Hospital was the FIRST hospital built under that Act.

    Since Vidant Health announced the closure of Pungo Hospital in September, 2013, Belhaven residents have been struggling with the uncertainty of future access to healthcare. In light of the recent tornados that hit Belhaven and Pantego, area residents were thankful that Pungo Hospital Emergency Room was still open.

    As the April 1st deadline to close Pungo Hospital neared, Vidant Health system began cutting the lifelines that provide Emergency Room service to 25,000 residents in eastern rural North Carolina. The impact of this closure was going to require Hyde County residents to travel an extra hour to Beaufort County Hospital for medical care. One very important thing that is consistently overlooked is that Hyde County doesn't even have a hospital.

    The NC NAACP State Chapter President Rev. William Barber realized it was time to move forward with the Civil Rights lawsuit filed in January of this year. In response to Rev. Barber's request, the US Department of Justice Civil Rights Division assigned a special investigator to review the lawsuit. In concert with the investigation, several meetings were conducted on neutral ground by a US DOJ Community Relations Service representative.

    Although the meetings were closed to the public, the tone of these spirited meetings was captured by the media in the end-of-the-day remarks. It was obvious that Vidant's previous "Take It or Leave It" mantra was not going to be acceptable to the DOJ.

    The intent of these meetings was to establish a process whereby the parties would demonstrate their ability to work together to maintain citizens' access to quality healthcare.

    The end result of the mediation was a working document that set forth conditions and contingencies required of all parties. Among other conditions, Vidant agreed to continue to operate Pungo Hospital, including the Emergency Room, through July 1, 2014.

    By working together, Vidant Health, NC NAACP and the Town of Belhaven have an opportunity to develop a model for a community-owned and operated rural hospital that could possibly be duplicated at multiple sites across the nation.

    After months of struggling to save Pungo Hospital there is light at the end of the tunnel.