Bed licenses not quite a done deal

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

McCOOK, Nebraska -- Hillcrest Nursing Home could garner $250,000, if certain conditions are met according to a proposed purchase agreement.

Red Willow County Attorney Paul Wood met with Hillcrest Board of Trustees at their regular meeting Tuesday morning and outlined the details in an agreement concerning Hillcrest selling 20 bed licenses to a company in Omaha, MNF, that is based out of Delaware.

Wood said the Delaware company was licensed to do business in Nebraska as of Oct. 11.

According to the agreement, the company would buy the licenses for $250,000, on the condition that by Dec. 31, 2012, that the company can purchase a total of 44 bed licenses and be able to buy real estate in Douglas County.

If the company cannot do those things, Hillcrest has the option to either terminate the contract or give them a 90-day extension, Wood said.

Because the board has "zero control" whether these conditions are met, he advised the board not to do anything with the money when it is received.

The purchase agreement is not ideal, he conceded, and is not one he would have written.

Still, "My job is to keep everyone out of court, so don't spend the money," he told the board.

Colinda Nappa, Hillcrest administrator, said it has been indicated to her that once the purchase agreement and closing date is set, a check could be sent fairly quickly.

The board voted unanimously to approve the purchase agreement and the corresponding transfer agreement. As Hillcrest is owned by Red Willow County, the agreements will be brought to the County Commissioners for approval.

In other business, the board was told by Wood that the former administrator at Hillcrest Nursing Home has notified him that the nursing home did not publish its meetings correctly.

Wood said he received a letter from Peggy Rogers, former Hillcrest Administrator who resigned May 16, that claimed three Hillcrest Board of Trustee meetings this year - Sept. 25, Aug. 28 and July 6 - were not published as legal notices in a newspaper.

Rogers also sent a copy of her letter to Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning.

Wood said he looked into the matter and found that those meetings were not published as legal notices and he has since advised current Hillcrest administrator, Colinda Nappa, of this. In the future, notices of meetings will be published as legal notices.

For legal action, Wood added that he would have to prove that the board intentionally evaded the public by not publicizing the meetings as legal notices and he did not find that to be the case.

To rectify the meetings not published as legals, the board unanimously approved on Tuesday all actions taken at those meetings.

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