Central Health board questions UT contracts in light of DEI firings

Central Health leaders signaled they may seek to curtail or end contracts with the University of Texas’ Dell Medical School over objections to the university’s firing all staff involved in diversity, equity and inclusion programs in April.

At last week’s meeting of Central Health’s budget and finance committee, discussion turned to the health care district’s assorted services and cooperative agreements in place with the medical school aside from its annual $35 million payment that was approved by voters to cover treatment for vulnerable communities.

Board Member Cynthia Valadez said by enforcing the requirements of a new anti-DEI law passed last year by the state Legislature, the university was acting counter to Central Health’s commitment to equitable health care in Austin.

“In light of the fact that University of Texas has taken a position in support of our partisan state elected officials against exercising any efforts to improve DEI efforts by institutions and agencies, I personally have a problem with us investing any money in a racist, systemically biased system, that is the University of Texas Medical School and all affiliates, anything associated with it,” she said while asking the organization’s financial staff for a list of active contracts with the medical school.

CFO Jeff Knodel said Central Health has a $4.3 million clinical services contract with the medical school focused on specialty care such as musculoskeletal and gynecology services. There is also a small clinical contract with the School of Nursing for less than $50,000.

COO Jon Morgan added that Central Health has a long-term $1.4 million ground lease agreement for the medical school building, as well as a master services agreement for an assortment of services provided to Central Health patients. Morgan said discussions have also taken place to expand those agreements to cover additional services including pain management, psychiatry and reproductive health, with the two entities working together in recruitment efforts for doctors and nurses trained in specialty areas.

Valadez said she wants the board to evaluate whether it would make sense for Central Health to directly manage those and other needed services directly rather than farming out the care to the medical school.

Board Member Shannon Jones agreed with Valadez.

“I’ll have a real problem voting to support a budget to support a medical school in which that medical school has made a decision in my view that is contrary to what the voters voted for … they voted to incorporate in it the equity piece,” he said.

The possible reconsideration of Central Health’s fiscal and contractual relationship with the medical school could add a complicated twist to the ongoing lawsuit that could jeopardize the annual $35 million payment to the school that is funded through a property tax assessment collected by the health care district.

Board Chair Ann Kitchen noted the lawsuit and its eventual outcome will have to be taken into consideration with any other action related to Central Health’s contracts with the medical school.

“We’re engaged in a lawsuit right now about the $35 million and so the discussion of what we can use it for and when we can say that we have any discretion about that $35 million payment is tied up in the lawsuit, so I would just defer any conversations about whether or not we should be paying $35 million or not based on what UT is doing or not doing to a conversation about that lawsuit.”

Photo made available through a Creative Commons license.

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