Lee Health to Host Community Town Hall Meetings on Governance Structure Evaluation

Meetings in January will be offered in each hospital district to educate and inform

(Fort Myers, Fla. – Dec. 18, 2023) --- Lee Health board members, alongside senior leaders, will host a series of town hall gatherings open to the public to speak with community members to share updates and answer questions regarding the governance structure evaluation that is currently underway. 

Following a recent change to Lee Health’s Enabling Act by the Florida Legislature and a formal vote by Lee Health’s Board of Directors (LHBOD) in August, Lee Health is conducting a comprehensive evaluation of its business structure with its safety-net mission in mind. The evaluation, which is being completed by a third-party expert, will help determine what, if any, benefits there would be to Lee County residents and the health system if Lee Health changed from its current public nonprofit business structure to a community-centered private nonprofit business structure—Lee Health’s business structure prior to 1968. 

Although the evaluation process will not be completed until February, Town Hall gatherings will give residents opportunities to ask questions and hear updates on the following: 

• The reasons Lee Health is evaluating its business structure and the process it’s following; 
• How Lee Health would maintain its unwavering commitment to its safety-net mission by continuing to care for the residents of our community, regardless of their ability to pay; 
• What the system knows today about the two nonprofit business structures it is evaluating and the additional issues that will be assessed as part of the evaluation.

The evaluation is one step in a thoughtful and lengthy discernment process that includes a public hearing and votes by both the Lee Health Board of Directors and the Lee County Board of Commissioners.

The Community Town Hall gatherings are scheduled for the following dates:

• January 4, 2024, 6 p.m. at Lehigh Acres Municipal Services Improvement District 601 E. County Lane Lehigh Acres 33936
• January 5, 2024, 6 p.m. Quality Life Center 3210 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. Fort Myers 33916
• January 8, 2024, 6 p.m. Lakes Regional Library 152390 Bass Rd. Fort Myers 33919
• January 9, 2024, 6 p.m. Cape Christian Church Student Center 2110 Chiquita Blvd. S Cape Coral 33991
• January 10, 2024, 6 p.m. Fort Myers Downtown Library 2450 First St. Fort Myers 33901
• January 11, 2024, 6 p.m. St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church 2304 Periwinkle Way, Sanibel, FL 33957

In addition to these Community Town Hall meetings, a Public Hearing is scheduled for January 25, 2024, at 3 p.m. in the Community Room at Gulf Coast Medical Center. 

To learn more about the ongoing evaluation process, visit LeeHealth.org/LookingAhead.