Voters approve hospital election reform
Staff writer
Voters who crowded a basement meeting room Tuesday approved a change in how St. Luke Hospital directors are elected.
They voted 74-17 to shift future elections from annual meetings to regular November ballots beginning in 2027.
Under the new system, board elections will be every two years, during regular November elections in odd-numbered years, just as school board races are.
Hospital officials said state law effectively limited the district to either annual in-person meeting elections or regular voting.
“This is something that the board’s been looking at after years of saying, how can we make it easier for people to vote?” chief executive Alex Haines said.
A particular problem with voting only at in-person meetings has been that people living outside Marion have trouble making it to 5 p.m. meetings, he said.
The vote Tuesday finalized the change rather than merely placing the issue on a future ballot.
“With the vote ‘yes’ winning, the board election process . . . in 2027 will be administered by the county,” he said.
The board still must determine how terms will transition from yearly elections to elections every two years.
Haines said the first county-administered election would be in November, 2027, with elected members taking office in January, 2028.
Three board members were re-elected Tuesday. Dan Holub received 86 votes, Linda Carlson received 77, and Roger Hannaford III received 71. Former board member Gene Winkler received 49 votes.
Twelve write-in votes were cast for Chris Hernandez, but the hospital later determined he was ineligible because he does not reside within the district.
During candidate remarks, Winkler revisited previous controversies surrounding the hospital, including disputes involving Lanning Pharmacy and former hospital leaders.
Winkler acknowledged leaking information to the newspaper during that dispute.
The election followed Haines’ annual report, which highlighted continued outpatient growth and improved finances.
Haines reported outpatient procedures surpassed 100,000 in 2025, continuing a years-long trend toward outpatient rather than inpatient care.
Chief financial officer Bev Reid said the hospital posted $29 million in gross operating revenue during the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, an 8% increase from the previous year.
After including non-operating income such as grants, donations, and tax revenue, the hospital finished with a $1.2 million bottom line, nearly 20% higher than the prior year.
Haines also highlighted employee retention. He said the hospital’s average employee had worked there for seven years four months — nearly double the statewide hospital average of 3.9 years.