Plan for new facilities

The Galveston County Health District’s plan to move into the old Wal-Mart property in Texas City would allow health officials to solve problems and deliver services more efficiently.

The question that’s still out is money. The health district’s plans are part of larger discussions for a countywide bond issue, which would include a lot of roadwork.

The commissioners court is still discussing the idea of a bond issue.

But the plan to buy the old Wal-Mart building makes a lot of sense.

If the county does buy the 120,000-square-foot building — with the approval of voters — the health district would get most of the space.

The health district is now spread out. But, if you ignore some smaller offices, ambulance stations and the animal shelter, the health district operates in three large buildings.

The administration building in La Marque was built in the 1950s and has problems with its foundation, roof and air-conditioning system.

Next door, the environmental-health building is in better shape but is cramped. Health-district workers are responsible for air- and water-quality monitoring and restaurant inspections. As the county has grown, the demand for these services has increased. The district is simply out of room.

The third main building is leased. The district is paying almost $30,000 a month for space for its 4Cs Clinic in Texas City. The clinic provides health care to county residents who aren’t covered by insurance.

This is a core service, and the existing building wasn’t designed to be a clinic. Architects have suggested it would take $2.5 million to $3 million to renovate the space to improve efficiencies in the delivery of health care. It just doesn’t make sense to spend that kind of money on a building the county doesn’t own.

The knee-jerk reaction here is that this is an agency that is trying to get bigger, regardless of public cost.

Actually, this is an agency that has a measurable record in delivering public services efficiently. Its medical teams far exceed the state and national average in the numbers of patients they see. The health district has seen a decrease in the cost-per-patient visit. Its average costs are below the state and national averages.

The health district has spent some time thinking about how to deliver services more efficiently. The plan to consolidate offices at the old Wal-Mart building in Texas City is just an extension of that line of thought.