Future of Tri-Cities Cancer Center up in the air as 2 hospitals pull out

The new owner of the Kennewick and Pasco hospitals plans to withdraw from the Tri-Cities Cancer Center, according to officials at a Kennewick Public Hospital District Board meeting this week.

The cancer center in Kennewick is a nonprofit started 25 years ago with the Richland, Kennewick and Pasco hospitals each holding a third ownership.

Over the next 180 days the assets of the cancer center will be calculated to allow the owner of the two hospitals, LifePoint Health, to withdraw and potentially be compensated for two-thirds of the value of the center.

Under the center’s bylaws, owners must be nonprofits.

But in 2018 the for-profit RCCH HealthCare Partners bought both Trios Health in Kennewick and Lourdes Health Network in Pasco.

Later that year RCCH was acquired by another for-profit company, LifePoint Health, now the owner of Trios and Lourdes.

When RCCH purchased Trios last year, RCCH (now LifePoint) had 12 months to work out a resolution for its third-share of the cancer center.

When that had not happened by June 30, a one-month extension was granted through July.

Hospitals find no solution

Attorneys representing Trios, Lourdes, Kadlec Medical Center in Richland and the cancer center had been meeting more frequently the last two weeks without reaching an agreement on how for-profit and nonprofit organizations could work together to own the cancer center under amended bylaws, according to information discussed at the hospital district meeting.

Earlier this week LifePoint directed Lourdes and the Kennewick Public Hospital District to withdraw its interest in the cancer center, said Leland Kerr, superintendent of the hospital district.

LifePoint did not respond to the Herald’s request for information.

RCCH bought the hospital district’s one-third share of the cancer center when it purchased Trios, but the public hospital district has continued to hold it because RCCH was not a nonprofit.

However, the hospital district board is contractually obligated to do what LifePoint wants on the cancer center, including withdrawing from it.

The board unanimously voted Thursday to withdraw from the center, triggering the start of the 180-day period to value the center’s assets.

If the board did not withdraw the hospital district from the cancer center it would be in breach of its contract with LifePoint, giving it no choice, said board President Gary Long.

Lourdes did not release information this week about the status of its cancer center ownership.

Kadlec committed to ‘seamless transition’

The Kennewick board speculated that possible nonprofit buyers for LifePoint’s portion of the cancer center could be Kadlec or perhaps the cancer center might be able to finance a purchase.

Kadlec said that the official withdrawal process for LifePoint had not yet been set in motion Friday, and no decisions have been made on the future organizational governance or ownership structure of the cancer center.

“Kadlec’s goal through the discussions with our partner organizations over the past year has been to develop a path forward that continues to foster community-focused cancer care here in the Tri-Cities,” Kadlec said in a statement. “Kadlec is committed to working in partnership wit the cancer center board and the other members to ensure a seamless transition.”

It remains committed to “building and expanding on the 25 years of dedicated services this center has brought to the Tri-Cities,” Kadlec said.

Cancer Center celebrates 25 years

As a nonprofit, the cancer center has been bolstered by the fundraising of its strong foundation.

The foundation has raised $25 million total as the center is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, said Wanda Briggs, a member of the Kennewick Public Hospital District Board and the cancer center board. For-profit organizations typically do not have foundations.

The cancer center was started 25 years ago after what was then Kennewick General Hospital planned to build a treatment center in the Vista Field area and was eventually joined in the venture by Kadlec and Lourdes.

Community leaders had a vision for a standalone center that would provide cancer treatment and prevention services, plus support for patients and their families.

The initial building was financed solely through donations and was operated by the three hospitals initially for mostly radiation treatment.

Oncology services were added later and are now provided at the cancer center building by Kadlec.

The center also serves as a community resource for cancer support, education and information.

This story was originally published July 26, 2019 at 11:21 AM.