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Fort Smith lawmakers told Beverly HQ will stay in state, panel told Wednesday, Oct 26, 2005 By Rob Moritz Arkansas News Bureau LITTLE ROCK - The company trying to buy Fort-based Beverly Enterprises Inc. has sent a letter to lawmakers in western Arkansas saying it plans to keep the company's headquarters in Arkansas, a state legislative panel was told Tuesday. Rep. Stephen Bright, R-Maumelle, said a letter wasn't enough and demanded that such a pledge be included in the sales documents. "Has this been put in writing, in the business agreement, in the merger agreement, that NASC (North American Senior Care) is committed to keeping these jobs in Fort Smith?" Bright asked. "If not, than the residents of Fort Smith, the legislators of Fort Smith, the people that live in these (nursing) homes ... are being sold a load of sunshine." The Senate and House Interim Committees on Public Health, Welfare and Labor, was told by an attorney for Beverly that that the purchase is to be finalized by Nov. 18 and that as of now there is nothing in the final agreement that promises the nursing home headquarters will remain in the state. The joint committee met Tuesday at the Fay Boozman College of Public Health on the campus of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. In recent months, Bright has raised several questions about the pending $1.9 billion sale of Beverly Enterprises Inc. to NASC, which is based in New York. During previous committee meetings, lawmakers have debated whether the Legislature should even be reviewing the business deal. The second hearing ended abruptly when many on the committee said the discussion could cause potential negative publicity for the publicly traded company and possibly hurt the sale. Beverly cares for 1,442 nursing home residents in Arkansas and has 2,138 employees, including 600 at the Fort Smith headquarters. Bright said Tuesday that his concern is for the health care of the residents. If the purchase is finalized and NASC moves Beverly's headquarters out of state and just leases nursing homes in Arkansas, that could hurt patient care, the lawmakers said, adding it also would make it more difficult for patients or their families to seek any recourse if there is negligence on the part of the facility. At one point during the meeting, Rep. Jim Medley, R-Fort Smith, told Bright it "sounds like you want to promote a lawsuit." After the meeting, Bright said he was disappointed with the suggestion. "It's not about lawsuits, it's about accountability," he said. "There's no accountability of these management companies. Management companies have no oversight. All of the regulation, all the bad, all the regulatory goes back to the licensee." During the meeting, Pete Robinson, an Atlanta lawyer hired to review the purchase by NASC, told the committee that both Beverly and his company "are working very hard to make sure (the purchase) goes forward." Robinson is the former pro tempore of the Georgia Senate. Nick Thompson, a Little Rock attorney representing Beverly, also said that Beverly and NASC are working together and are committed to Arkansas. Sen. Percy Malone, D-Arkadelphia, said he was troubled that the committee was spending so much time talking about the business deal. He suggested that the Legislature in 2007 discuss possible legislation requiring nursing home companies that do business to have assets and other business presence in the state. During the first 15 or 20 minutes of discussion, Bright and Medley traded barbs over whether Beverly and NASC were willing to discuss the sale with lawmakers. Medley said Bright was offered a meeting and he refused. Bright said he has sent a letter and questionnaire to NASC officials and has not received a reply. At one point, Sen. Jack Critcher, D-Batesville, referred to the way Bright and Medley were talking to each other as "sparring." |
