ABOUT US

The Bay Medical Center Special District (District) is a non-taxable, governmental health care entity created by the Florida legislature as a special district and located in Panama City, Florida. The hospital associated with the District was originally established in 1946 as a community hospital and has been the subject of various special acts of the Florida legislature from 1946 through the present. Currently, the District operates under Chapter 2005-343, Laws of Florida, which superseded and amended all prior special acts relating to the District and the community hospital.

On April 1, 2012, the District entered into a long term lease agreement with Sacred Heart Health System, Inc. and LHP Hospital Group, Inc. to lease the hospital for 40 years with two 10-year extensions. Proceeds from the prepaid lease and cash assets of the District went into the Bay Health Foundation, the name chosen by the nine-member Special District Board to reflect its new purpose and avoid confusion with the hospital. The most significant source of revenue for the District comes from the careful investment of this corpus of funds.

The District Board’s major objectives are to ensure the security of the Bay Medical Pension Plan through prudent investments and conservative actuarial assumptions; to satisfy and manage all post-transaction liabilities; to monitor the covenants related to the lease of the hospital and health care facilities and to ensure the fidelity of all agreements; and to collaborate with other health care organizations to strengthen health care services in the community.

The greatest responsibility the Board manages is the Bay Medical Pension Plan. Over the last several years, the Board strengthened the financial security of the Pension Plan by adopting more conservative actuarial assumptions that are reflective of managing the liabilities of a closed pension plan (all new participation in the Plan ceased on March 31, 2012). As of the January 1, 2022 Actuarial Valuation, the Pension had 1,463 participants and an actuarial market value of assets of $118.8 million resulting in a Plan funding level of 101.5% compared to 99.9% the previous year. For calendar year 2021, the actuarial market value investment return of 12.37% was more than the investment return assumption of 7.25%. Actuarial market value return was the major source of actuarial gain during 2021. Three, five and ten-year average annual investment return has been 13.83%, 10.2% and 9.2% respectively and on an actuarial market value basis. Another material source of funding for the Pension comes from the Board in the form of annual required contributions.  For fiscal year 2021, those contributions totaled $13 thousand. For fiscal year 2020, those contributions totaled $1.25 million. For the last 10 fiscal years, the total contribution from the Board was $30.9 million which was $11.8 million more than the required contribution for that ten-year time period.  Click this link, for more detailed information about the Bay Medical Center Pension Plan.

Other responsibilities that the Board manages include medical malpractice liability prior to the lease of the hospital in 2012, open Medicare, Medicaid and Champus cost reports, as well as Medicare RAC audits and related appeals.

Through its grant making program, the District funds health care organizations in Bay County through various contracts and grants; which support may include, but is not limited to, St. Andrew’s Clinic, Avicenna Clinic, chronic disease management programs, other emergency room diversion clinics, and other local health improvement initiatives. Since inception of the grant program in 2012, the District has awarded $4.8 million in grants to fourteen local organizations. The goal of these grants is to continuously improve health care for the citizens of Bay County and foster collaborations between agencies.

The District’s fiscal year is October 1 – September 30. Click this link, to see a copy of the latest audited financial statements for the District and this link for the latest approved budget.

Related Links
https://apps.fldfs.com/LocalGov/Reports/
http://www.ethics.state.fl.us/
Latest District audited financials
Chapter 2005-343
Latest approved budget