Too many beds? Scaled-back Alton hospital slammed

First of two parts

Seeking to win over neighbors opposed to a full-service hospital off Donald Ross Road in Alton, health-care giant Universal Health Services shaved its original plan for 450 beds to 300 and moved a proposed helipad farther from neighbors.

While opponents living in million-dollar Alton homes south of the hospital won’t publicly comment on the changes as negotiations with UHS are ongoing, questions still surround the need for a third full-service hospital in north county. 

“There’s no need, in my opinion, for another hospital,” former Jupiter Medical Center CEO John Couris said in a recent interview. “If I was an Alton resident and I bought a million-dollar home only to find out a 120-bed hospital was going to be put in front of my community with helicopters and ambulance traffic over and above, I wouldn’t be happy about it.”

“There’s no reason for it. None,” he said. “We’re already overbedded. What you’ll hear from the chain is the community is growing.”

When asked to discuss the need for the project and the ability to find enough doctors and nurses to staff it, UHS Florida Vice President Kevin DiLallo responded with a brief  statement: 

“The need has been established based upon increasing population growth and local demographics, and we will staff appropriately, in accordance with industry and accrediting body standards,” he wrote. 

He did not respond to follow-up questions or agree to an interview.

Couris is now CEO at Tampa General Hospital, which is making a major play in Palm Beach County by buying physician groups. But, he said, Tampa General is not interested in building a hospital here.

He pointed to occupancy rates published by the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration that show Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center at 64 percent occupancy in 2020 and Jupiter Medical Center at 57 percent. The full-service hospital with the highest occupancy rate in 2020 in Palm Beach County is UHS-owned Wellington Regional Medical Center, which is licensed for 235 beds. 

Part 2: Competition heats up for health-care in north county

Author: Joel Engelhardt

Joel Engelhardt is an award-winning newspaper reporter and editor based in Palm Beach Gardens. He spent more than 40 years in the newspaper business, including 28 years at The Palm Beach Post. As a reporter, he covered countywide growth, the 2000 election and the birth of Cityplace in West Palm Beach. As an editor, he oversaw probes into the opioid scourge, private prisons, police-involved shootings and more. For seven years, he worked on the paper’s editorial board. Joel left The Post in December 2020. He and his wife, Donna, have lived together in Palm Beach Gardens since 1992. View all posts by Joel Engelhardt