Greenwood Leflore Hospital; authorize owners to sell or lease subject to certain conditions.

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To: Public Health and Human
Services
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Representative Creekmore IV

HOUSE BILL NO. 1372

AN ACT TO AUTHORIZE THE GOVERNING AUTHORITIES OF THE CITY OF 1
GREENWOOD AND THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF LEFLORE COUNTY, AS 2
OWNERS OF GREENWOOD LEFLORE HOSPITAL, TO SELL OR LEASE ALL OF THE 3
PROPERTY OF THE HOSPITAL, SUBJECT TO CERTAIN CONDITIONS; TO BRING 4
FORWARD SECTION 41-13-15, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, FOR THE 5
PURPOSE OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 6
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 7
SECTION 1. (1) The governing authorities of the City of 8
Greenwood and the Board of Supervisors of Leflore County, as 9
owners of Greenwood Leflore Hospital, are authorized to sell or 10
lease all or part of the property, real or personal, comprising 11
the hospital, including any related facilities, wherever located, 12
and/or assets of the hospital, to any individual, partnership or 13
corporation, whether operating on a nonprofit basis or on a profit 14
basis, or to the owner or board of trustees of another community 15
hospital, subject to the following conditions: 16
(a) The sale or lease of the hospital property must 17
comply with the applicable provisions of Section 41-13-15 18
regarding the sale or lease of a community hospital, except where 19
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the provisions of this section require or authorize a different 20
procedure; 21
(b) The sale or lease of the hospital property must be 22
competitively bid, with the current owners disclosing all of the 23
hospital's assets and liabilities to those who submit bids for the 24
hospital property; 25
(c) The sale or lease of the hospital property must be 26
completed within one (1) year after the effective date of this 27
act; 28
(d) The current owners must relinquish their ownership 29
in and rights to operate the hospital property; 30
(e) The new owners will be responsible for all debts 31
and other liabilities of the hospital, including repayment to the 32
Division of Medicaid of 2024 and 2025 Mississippi Access Hospital 33
Program (MHAP) overpayments incorrectly made to the hospital by 34
the division; 35
(f) The new owners must maintain the Rural Community 36
Hospital Demonstration Program approved in 2025, provided that the 37
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services allows the hospital to 38
maintain its designation under that program; 39
(g) The new owners must continue to operate an 40
emergency room at the hospital; and 41
(h) The new owners must maintain the swing-bed program 42
of the hospital. 43
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(2) This section shall not take effect until after the 44
Legislature has enacted legislation that is approved by the 45
Governor, becomes law without the Governor's signature, or is 46
approved by the Legislature after a veto that: 47
(a) Requires the Division of Medicaid to delay until 48
calendar year 2027 the recoupment of 2024 and 2025 MHAP 49
overpayments from the hospital that the division incorrectly made 50
to the hospital, and allows the recoupment payments to be made 51
under an installment repayment plan negotiated between the 52
hospital and the division, with full repayment being required no 53
earlier than twelve (12) months from the beginning date of the 54
plan; and 55
(b) Appropriates not less than Ten Million Dollars 56
($10,000,000.00) to be paid to the new owners of the hospital for 57
the purpose of operating the hospital, provided that all 58
stipulations in subsection (1) of this section are agreed upon by 59
the governing authorities of the City of Greenwood and Board of 60
Supervisors of Leflore County and the new owners of the hospital. 61
SECTION 2. Section 41-13-15, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 62
brought forward as follows: 63
41-13-15. (1) Any county and/or any political or judicial 64
subdivision of a county and/or any municipality of the State of 65
Mississippi, acting individually or jointly, may acquire and hold 66
real estate for a community hospital either recognized and/or 67
licensed as such by either the State of Mississippi or the United 68
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States Government, and may, after complying with applicable health 69
planning and licensure statutes, construct a community hospital 70
thereon and/or appropriate funds according to the provisions of 71
this chapter for the construction, remodeling, maintaining, 72
equipping, furnishing and expansion of such facilities by the 73
board of trustees upon such real estate. 74
(2) Where joint ownership of a community hospital is 75
involved, the owners are hereby authorized to contract with each 76
other for determining the pro rata ownership of such community 77
hospital, the proportionate cost of maintenance and operation, and 78
the proportionate financing that each will contribute to the 79
community hospital. 80
(3) The owners may likewise contract with each other, or on 81
behalf of any subordinate political or judicial subdivision, or 82
with the board of trustees of a community hospital, and/or any 83
agency of the State of Mississippi or the United States 84
Government, for necessary purposes related to the establishment, 85
operation or maintenance of community hospitals and related 86
programs wherever located, and may either accept from, sell or 87
contribute to the other entities, monies, personal property or 88
existing health facilities. The owners or the board of trustees 89
may also receive monies, property or any other valuables of any 90
kind through gifts, donations, devises or other recognized means 91
from any source for the purpose of hospital use. 92
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(4) Owners and boards of trustees, acting jointly or 93
severally, may acquire and hold real estate for offices for 94
physicians and other health care practitioners and related health 95
care or support facilities, provided that any contract for the 96
purchase of real property must be ratified by the owner, and may 97
thereon construct and equip, maintain and remodel or expand such 98
offices and related facilities, and the board of trustees may 99
lease same to members of the hospital staff or others at a rate 100
deemed to be in the best interest of the community hospital. 101
(5) If any political or judicial subdivision of a county is 102
obligated hereunder, the boundaries of such district shall not be 103
altered in such a manner as to relieve any portion thereof of its 104
obligation hereunder. 105
(6) Owners may convey to any other owner any or all 106
property, real or personal, comprising any existing community 107
hospital, including related facilities, wherever located, owned by 108
such conveying owner. Such conveyance shall be upon such terms 109
and conditions as may be agreed upon and may make such provisions 110
for transfers of operating funds and/or for the assumption of 111
liabilities of the community hospital as may be deemed appropriate 112
by the respective owners. 113
(7) (a) Except as provided for in subsection (11) of this 114
section, owners may lease all or part of the property, real or 115
personal, comprising a community hospital, including any related 116
facilities, wherever located, and/or assets of such community 117
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hospital, to any individual, partnership or corporation, whether 118
operating on a nonprofit basis or on a profit basis, or to the 119
board of trustees of such community hospital or any other owner or 120
board of trustees, subject to the applicable provisions of 121
subsections (8), (9) and (10) of this section. The term of such 122
lease shall not exceed fifty (50) years. Such lease shall be 123
conditioned upon (i) the leased facility continuing to operate in 124
a manner safeguarding community health interests; (ii) the 125
proceeds from the lease being first applied against such bonds, 126
notes or other evidence of indebtedness as are issued pursuant to 127
Section 41-13-19 as and when they are due, provided that the terms 128
of the lease shall cover any indebtedness pursuant to Section 129
41-13-19; and (iii) any surplus proceeds from the lease being 130
deposited in the general fund of the owner, which proceeds may be 131
used for any lawful purpose. Such lease shall be subject to the 132
express approval of the board of trustees of the community 133
hospital, except in the case where the board of trustees of the 134
community hospital will be the lessee. However, owners may not 135
lease any community hospital to the University of Mississippi 136
Medical Center unless first the University of Mississippi Medical 137
Center has obtained authority to lease such hospital under 138
specific terms and conditions from the Board of Trustees of State 139
Institutions of Higher Learning. 140
If the owner wishes to lease a community hospital without an 141
option to sell it and the approval of the board of trustees of the 142
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community hospital is required but is not given within thirty (30) 143
days of the request for its approval by the owner, then the owner 144
may enter such lease as described herein on the following 145
conditions: A resolution by the owner describing its intention to 146
enter such lease shall be published once a week for at least three 147
(3) consecutive weeks in at least one (1) newspaper published in 148
the county or city, as the case may be, or if none be so 149
published, in a newspaper having a general circulation therein. 150
The first publication of such notice shall be made not less than 151
twenty-one (21) days prior to the date fixed in such resolution 152
for the lease of the community hospital and the last publication 153
shall be made not more than seven (7) days prior to such date. 154
If, on or prior to the date fixed in such resolution for the lease 155
of the community hospital, there shall be filed with the clerk of 156
the owner a petition signed by twenty percent (20%) or fifteen 157
hundred (1500), whichever is less, of the qualified voters of such 158
owner, requesting that an election be called and held on the 159
question of the lease of the community hospital, then it shall be 160
the duty of the owner to call and provide for the holding of an 161
election as petitioned for. In such case, no such lease shall be 162
entered into unless authorized by the affirmative vote of the 163
majority of the qualified voters of such owner who vote on the 164
proposition at such election. Notice of such election shall be 165
given by publication in like manner as hereinabove provided for 166
the publication of the initial resolution. Such election shall be 167
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conducted and the return thereof made, canvassed and declared as 168
nearly as may be in like manner as is now or may hereafter be 169
provided by law in the case of general elections in such owner. 170
If, on or prior to the date fixed in the owner's resolution for 171
the lease of the community hospital, no such petition as described 172
above is filed with the clerk of the owner, then the owner may 173
proceed with the lease subject to the other requirements of this 174
section. Subject to the above conditions, the lease agreement 175
shall be upon such terms and conditions as may be agreed upon and 176
may make such provision for transfers of tangible and intangible 177
personal property and operating funds and/or for the assumption of 178
liabilities of the community hospital and for such lease payments, 179
all as may be deemed appropriate by the owners. 180
(b) Owners may sell and convey all or part of the 181
property, real or personal, comprising a community hospital, 182
including any related facilities, wherever located, and/or assets 183
of such community hospital, to any individual, partnership or 184
corporation, whether operating on a nonprofit basis or on a profit 185
basis, or to the board of trustees of such community hospital or 186
any other owner or board of trustees, subject to the applicable 187
provisions of subsections (8) and (10) of this section. Such sale 188
and conveyance shall be upon such terms and conditions as may be 189
agreed upon by the owner and the purchaser that are consistent 190
with the requirements of this section, and the parties may make 191
such provisions for the transfer of operating funds or for the 192
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assumption of liabilities of the facility, or both, as they deem 193
appropriate. However, such sale and conveyance shall be 194
conditioned upon (i) the facility continuing to operate in a 195
manner safeguarding community health interests; (ii) the proceeds 196
from such sale being first applied against such bonds, notes or 197
other evidence of indebtedness as are issued pursuant to Section 198
41-13-19 as and when they are due, provided that the terms of the 199
sale shall cover any indebtedness pursuant to Section 41-13-19; 200
and (iii) any surplus proceeds from the sale being deposited in 201
the general fund of the owner, which proceeds may be used for any 202
lawful purpose. However, owners may not sell or convey any 203
community hospital to the University of Mississippi Medical Center 204
unless first the University of Mississippi Medical Center has 205
obtained authority to purchase such hospital under specific terms 206
and conditions from the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of 207
Higher Learning. 208
(8) Whenever any owner decides that it may be in its best 209
interests to sell or lease a community hospital as provided for 210
under subsection (7) of this section, the owner shall first 211
contract with a certified public accounting firm, a law firm or 212
competent professional health care or management consultants to 213
review the current operating condition of the community hospital. 214
The review shall consist of, at minimum, the following: 215
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(a) A review of the community's inpatient facility 216
needs based on current workload, historical trends and 217
projections, based on demographic data, of future needs. 218
(b) A review of the competitive market for services, 219
including other hospitals which serve the same area, the services 220
provided and the market perception of the competitive hospitals. 221
(c) A review of the hospital's strengths relative to 222
the competition and its capacity to compete in light of projected 223
trends and competition. 224
(d) An analysis of the hospital's options, including 225
service mix and pricing strategies. If the study concludes that a 226
sale or lease should occur, the study shall include an analysis of 227
which option would be best for the community and how much revenues 228
should be derived from the lease or sale. 229
(9) After the review and analysis under subsection (8) of 230
this section, an owner may choose to sell or lease the community 231
hospital. If an owner chooses to sell such hospital or lease the 232
hospital with an option to sell it, the owner shall follow the 233
procedure specified in subsection (10) of this section. If an 234
owner chooses to lease the hospital without an option to sell it, 235
it shall first spread upon its minutes why such a lease is in the 236
best interests of the persons living in the area served by the 237
facility to be leased, and it shall make public any and all 238
findings and recommendations made in the review required under 239
proposals for the lease, which shall state clearly the minimum 240
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required terms of all respondents and the evaluation process that 241
will be used when the owner reviews the proposals. The owner 242
shall lease to the respondent submitting the highest and best 243
proposal. In no case may the owner deviate from the process 244
provided for in the request for proposals. 245
(10) If an owner wishes to sell such community hospital or 246
lease the hospital with an option to sell it, the owner first 247
shall conduct a public hearing on the issue of the proposed sale 248
or lease with an option to sell the hospital. Notice of the date, 249
time, location and purpose of the public hearing shall be 250
published once a week for at least three (3) consecutive weeks in 251
at least one (1) newspaper published in the county or city, as the 252
case may be, or if none be so published, in a newspaper having a 253
general circulation therein. The first publication of the notice 254
shall be made not less than twenty-one (21) days before the date 255
of the public hearing and the last publication shall be made not 256
more than seven (7) days before that date. If there is filed with 257
the clerk of the owner not more than twenty-one (21) days after 258
the date of the public hearing, a petition signed by twenty 259
percent (20%) or fifteen hundred (1500), whichever is less, of the 260
qualified voters of the owner, requesting that an election be 261
called and held on the question of whether the owner should 262
proceed with the process of seeking proposals for the sale or 263
lease with an option to sell the hospital, then it shall be the 264
duty of the owner to call and provide for the holding of an 265
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election as petitioned for. Notice of the election shall be given 266
by publication in the same manner as provided for the publication 267
of the notice of the public hearing. The election shall be 268
conducted and the return thereof made, canvassed and declared in 269
the same manner as provided by law in the case of general 270
elections in the owner. If less than a majority of the qualified 271
voters of the owner who vote on the proposition at such election 272
vote in favor of the owner proceeding with the process of seeking 273
proposals for the sale or lease with an option to sell the 274
hospital, then the owner is not authorized to sell or lease the 275
hospital. If a majority of the qualified voters of the owner who 276
vote on the proposition at such election vote in favor of the 277
owner proceeding with the process of seeking proposals for the 278
sale or lease with an option to sell the hospital, then the owner 279
may seek proposals for the sale or lease of the hospital. If no 280
such petition is timely filed with the clerk of the owner, then 281
the owner may proceed with the process of seeking proposals for 282
the sale or lease with an option to sell the hospital. The owner 283
shall adopt a resolution describing its intention to sell or lease 284
with an option to sell the hospital, which shall include the 285
owner's reasons why such a sale or lease is in the best interests 286
of the persons living in the area served by the facility to be 287
sold or leased. The owner then shall publish a copy of the 288
resolution; the requirements for proposals for the sale or lease 289
with an option to sell the hospital, which shall state clearly the 290
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minimum required terms of all respondents and the evaluation 291
process that will be used when the owner reviews the proposals; 292
and the date proposed by the owner for the sale or lease with an 293
option to sell the hospital. Such publication shall be made once 294
a week for at least three (3) consecutive weeks in at least one 295
(1) newspaper published in the county or city, as the case may be, 296
or if none be so published, in a newspaper having a general 297
circulation therein. The first publication of the notice shall be 298
made not less than twenty-one (21) days before the date proposed 299
for the sale or lease with an option to sell the hospital and the 300
last publication shall be made not more than seven (7) days before 301
that date. After receiving proposals, such sale or lease shall be 302
made to the respondent submitting the highest and best proposal. 303
In no case may the owner deviate from the process provided for in 304
the request for proposals. 305
(11) A lessee of a community hospital, under a lease entered 306
into under the authority of Section 41-13-15, in effect prior to 307
July 15, 1993, or an affiliate thereof, may extend or renew such 308
lease whether or not an option to renew or extend the lease is 309
contained in the lease, for a term not to exceed fifteen (15) 310
years, conditioned upon (a) the leased facility continuing to 311
operate in a manner safeguarding community health interest; (b) 312
proceeds from the lease being first applied against such bonds, 313
notes or other evidence of indebtedness as are issued pursuant to 314
Section 41-13-19; (c) surplus proceeds from the lease being used 315
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ST: Greenwood Leflore Hospital; authorize
owners to sell or lease subject to certain
conditions.
for health related purposes; (d) subject to the express approval 316
of the board of trustees of the community hospital; and (e) 317
subject to the express approval of the owner. If no board of 318
trustees is then existing, the owner shall have the right to enter 319
into a lease upon such terms and conditions as agreed upon by the 320
parties. Any lease entered into under this subsection (11) may 321
contain an option to purchase the hospital, on such terms as the 322
parties shall agree. 323
SECTION 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from 324
and after its passage. 325