Winneshiek Medical Center rejects Gundersen Lutheran Health Plan

It's official.  The Board of Trustees of Winneshiek Medical Center on Wednesday voted 6-1 in support of the administration's recommendation not to name Gundersen Lutheran Health Plan as a preferred provider for hospital services.

The board heard Chief Administrative Officer Dan Werner state that it was the hospital Management Committee's unanimous opinion that "a full contract with Gundersen Lutheran Health Plan would put (the hospital's financial viability) at risk."  Werner stated that the Gundersen Lutheran Health Plan would "steer patients into their own system."  He also stated that the hospital's partnership with Mayo Health Systems "has been extremely valuable to us."

Board member Clark Goltz was the lone dissenting vote, saying he still had questions he wanted answered before he could endorse the recommendation.  Board president Ben Wyatt said Gundersen Lutheran had not done enough to prove they wouldn't use the health insurance coverage to compete with Winneshiek Medical Center: "If they want to be supporters of this facility, they should show their support," he said.

decorahnews.com's complete coverage of the Winneshiek Medical Center and Gundersen Lutheran Health Plan negotiations includes separate additional stories stating WMC's stance and Gundersen's stance, as well as Paul Scott's editorial comment.