Central Health talks new facilities, services in advance of 2025 budget

Travis County’s public hospital district that funds medical care for low-income residents plans to accelerate its introduction of new clinical services in its next budget year. Care for psychiatry, endocrinology and rheumatology are among the new offerings on tap in part because of budget reserves that are higher than anticipated.

At a community forum on Monday, leaders from the area’s health care district discussed their plans for the next budget, which is set to be voted on by the Travis County Commissioners Court in late September.

Patrick Lee, president and CEO of Central Health, opened the event by discussing work to offer more needed services such as podiatry, gastroenterology, palliative care and ultrasounds.

“In prior years, we’ve been asked, rightly, what are we doing now to meet the critical health care needs that we know our neighbors with low income have instead of planning for what we provide in the future,” he said. “These are services that a lot of MAP and MAP Basic and Sendero members have simply not had available to them without waiting weeks to months for an appointment that may come too late to help them really get better.”

Lee also discussed the organization’s work to open more facilities throughout the area, including Rosewood-Zaragosa Specialty Clinic, Del Valle Health & Wellness Center and Colony Park Health & Wellness Center, as well as three other recently opened facilities.

MiLinda Zabramba, associate chief medical officer, said ongoing evaluations of community needs have identified where Central Health can best focus its budget and resources, with treatment for sleep apnea, cardiology issues and substance abuse disorders among areas of concern. With 11 new lines of service already offered since October, Zabramba noted more than 15,000 patients have received treatment, with improvements in conditions such as colon cancer standing out.

“We’ve been able to link people to care sooner. The waitlist was approximately one year before we were able to get into that. We got it down to about three months,” she said.

Cynthia Gallegos, vice president of operations, broke down the priorities of the seven-year Healthcare Equity Strategic Plan, which is in its second year. Among those are access and capacity improvements, with more specialty care, care for unhoused people, mental health and primary care among the services identified for increased accessibility.

With new facilities on tap in addition to recently opened clinics, Gallegos said improved coordination of care will be essential, while also increasing MAP enrollment and improving engagement with all existing members.

Budget Director Kim Johnson said Central Health’s budget reserves of $494 million far exceed the amount that is typically accepted for such organizations, with the surplus in large part a result of high interest rates producing more savings revenue than anticipated. Some delays in construction also contributed to the reserve number, with leadership opting to speed up the release of new service lines.

“We had planned them a little further down the line,” she said, noting a $50 million expenditure planned in the next budget and $84.2 million in the following year for new lines of care. “We’re adding those services earlier than anticipated in order to help us use those reserves and build up our direct care lines.”

Johnson said the organization expects to increase its portion of property taxes by 6.5 percent next year, which should translate into an increase of $32 for the average home in its taxing district.

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