Attorney General's News Release

September 5, 2003

Nixon appoints board of directors for Kansas City metropolitan health care foundation; first meeting Sept. 23

Jefferson City, Mo. — Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon has appointed the inaugural board of directors for “A Rising Tide — The Greater Kansas City Health Care Foundation,” the $425 million foundation created from the proceeds of the sale of the Health Midwest hospital system to HCA Inc. The foundation, formed as part of the settlement between Nixon and Health Midwest, will be dedicated to increasing access to, and the quality of, health care services in the greater Kansas City area.

“We are very proud of what we've accomplished in creating this foundation and its board,” Nixon said. “This board of directors is an incredible group of leaders who will make a tremendous difference in meeting the health care needs of Kansas City area residents for generations to come.”

The board of directors will be installed at its first meeting, which will take place at 3 p.m. on Sept. 23 at the Linwood Multipurpose Center, located at 3201 Flora in Kansas City. Nixon will address the board at the meeting to discuss the foundation's mission and purposes. Nixon said although the foundation is not a governmental body, it will be subject to the Missouri Sunshine Law and will, with limited exceptions, conduct its meetings in public.

Under the agreement between Nixon and Health Midwest, the Attorney General made the board appointments from nominations received from local governments, Health Midwest and the community at large. The inaugural board members are:

• Harry Jonas, M.D.
• Gurnie Gunter
• Mary Lou Jaramillo
• Landon Rowland
• Rev. Dr. Wallace Hartsfield
• Herman Watson, M.D.
• David Ross
• Bridget McCandless, M.D.
• James Stephen Bower, M.D.
• G.L. "Larry" Blankinship Jr.
• Bridgette Williams
• Bernard Erdman
• Christina Esteban
• Mark Flaherty
• Rev. Emanuel Cleaver II
• Brenda Pelofsky
• Terry Thompson
• Karen Pletz
• Richard Nadeau
• Rita Valenciano
• Rodney Minkin
• Dan Couch
• Phillip Curls Sr.
• Ron Goldsmith
• Bishop Steve Jones

Under the foundation's bylaws, the members of the board will serve staggered terms. Directors Bower, Couch, Goldsmith, Jones, Ross, Thompson and Valenciano will serve initial one-year terms. Directors Cleaver, Curls, Erdman, Hartsfield, McCandless, Nadeau, Pelofsky, Watson and Williams will serve initial terms of two years. The remaining members will serve initial terms of three years.

All directors may serve a subsequent three-year term if nominated by the Community Advisory Committee and elected by the board. Two positions will be eliminated from the board in each of the first three years, reducing the initial 25-person board to its permanent size of 19 directors.

Inquiries from consumers should be directed to consumer@ago.mo.gov or 1-800-392-8222 (from within Missouri) or 573-751-3321 (outside Missouri).

All media inquiries should be directed to Press Secretary John Fougere.

E-mail      Phone: 573-751-8844         Fax: 573-751-5818