McDowell leaders demand transparency on possible Welch hospital sale

Welch Community Hospital is more than a building in Welch. State health-facilities records describe it as a 65-bed acute care hospital with a 59-bed long-term care unit, a 24/7 physician-staffed emergency room, a seven-bed intensive care unit, OB-GYN services, respiratory therapy, laboratory, radiology and inpatient pharmacy services. State records also describe it as the only state-funded acute care facility in West Virginia, and note that it participates in substance-use surveillance through the Drug Abuse Warning Network.

Delegate David Green, who represents McDowell County, said protecting the hospital has been his main goal since taking office in 2024. Green said he once opposed privatization, but changed his view after reviewing the hospital’s finances. He said Welch Community Hospital costs roughly $35 million a year to operate while bringing in only about $15 million to $17 million in revenue, a gap he said can reach $20 million a year. That pressure, Green said, is why state officials are exploring partnerships with private groups and possible changes that could help Welch qualify as a Critical Access Hospital, a separate Medicare provider type with its own payment method. CMS generally says such hospitals must be more than 35 miles from another hospital or CAH, or more than 15 miles in mountainous terrain or on only secondary roads, unless they were certified as a necessary provider before Jan. 1, 2006.