Longtime Kennewick official calls it quits. Applications open for his job
A longtime leader of the Kennewick Public Hospital District, Gary Long, is retiring, leaving an opening on the board of commissioners.
Long has served on the district’s board for more than a decade, including multiple terms as the board president and treasurer. Before joining the board he was a committee volunteer.
His tenure on the board was during the most tumultuous time of the district’s 75-year history, said a district announcement of his retirement.
The district formerly owned Kennewick General Hospital, now Trios Health.
When Trios Healthcare filed for bankruptcy in 2017, the hospital was sold to what is now LifePoint, a for-profit company, retaining the jobs of 1,000-plus employees and keeping a hospital open.
The district may not be dissolved as it remains contractually obligated to make “community service payments” to LifePoint for 26 years. It also uses some of its tax revenue on unmet health needs in the district, such as its work to establish a behavioral health recovery center in the unused downtown Kennewick hospital building.
“Going through the hospital’s transition and coming out the other side with a clearly defined structure of how to go forward was one of the toughest challenges,” Long said in a statement. “Saving the hospital was our greatest accomplishment.”
Long guided the district through a difficult time, said board President Mark Brault.
“(Long) was tireless in his efforts to launch the recovery center at the KGH campus and stepped into the treasurer role after the untimely death of Commissioner Steve Blodgett,” Brault said.
Long has been passionate about accessible and excellent healthcare, said District Superintendent Leland Kerr. That included providing scholarships for health care students, elder care at Adult Day Service and Grace Clinic’s diabetes care.
The board now is accepting applications for the vacancy left by Long.
Applicants must be registered voters living within the boundaries of the hospital district, which includes part of south Richland and extends south to the Columbia River.
Applications may be made through the district’s website at kenkphd.com or mailed to the Kennewick Public Hospital District, P.O. Box 6974, Kennewick WA 99336. Applications must be received by Jan. 29.