University of Virginia Library

At a meeting of the Board of Visitors held July 11, 1947, a committee composed of Dr. H. E.
Jordan, Dr. C. S. Lentz, and W. Allan Perkins, as Attorney for the University, was appointed for
the purpose of making a study and submitting a report to the Board upon the general subject of
the University's responsibility for the care and treatment in its hospital of indigent patients
under the terms of existing contracts with the City of Charlottesville and with the County of
Albemarle.

This committee now begs to submit the following report-

FIRST

We find that the only contract between the University and the City of Charlottesville
which provides for the general care and treatment of indigent patients from the City of Charlottesville
is dated October 7, 1915, is in many of its terms obsolete, and, as years have gone
by, many of its provisions have been radically changed in practice so that at the present time
that contract is not in form satisfactory either to the University or to the City. This contract
contains a provision that it may be terminated by either of the parties thereto upon sixty days
notice to the other party of the intention to terminate.

We therefore recommend that notice be at once given by the University to the City of
the University's intention to terminate this contract.

SECOND

There have been four contracts entered into by the University, County of Albemarle, and
City of Charlottesville, the purpose of each of these being to provide for the creation and operation
of a joint Department of Health for the University, County and City. The first of these contracts
was dated November 19, 1930, the last was dated as of July 1, 1940, and as each of these
superseded the preceding one the contract of July 1, 1940 is the only of these contracts that is
now in operation. Your Committee feels that on the whole this contract fairly well serves the
purpose for which it was intended, but that in some of its particulars it should be amended so
as to more nearly meet conditions as they now exist.

The Council of the City of Charlottesville and the Board of Supervisors of Albemarle
County have each recently appointed special committees for the purpose of formulating a new contract
under which the Joint Department of Health is to be operated, and your Committee feels that
it is important that the University should also have a committee appointed to confer with the
committees from the City and County so that a new Joint Health Department contract may be prepared
in form satisfactory to all three of the contracting parties.

We therefore recommend the appointment of a committee for that purpose.

THIRD

We have found that the University and the County of Albemarle have never had any form of
contract providing for the care and treatment in the University Hospital of indigent patients from
the County. Our only contracts with the County dealing with the subject of health have been those
providing for the joint Department of Health, above referred to and the only provision in the contract
of July 1, 1940, under which we are now operating on this subject is the provision that"In
consideration of an annual appropriation of undetermined amount by the County to the University
Hospital said University agrees that its Hospital will give preference to the care and treatment
of all indigent patients from said County which the Health Officer may certify to be a menace to
public health."

Your Committee therefore also recommends that a committee be appointed whose duty it
shall be to consult with City and County authorities and to negotiate new contracts for the care
and treatment in the Hospital of indigent patients from each of these localities, such contracts
to be in the form promulgated by the State Department of Health pursuant to Chapter 197 of the Acts
of Assembly of 1946, as amended by Acts of Extra Session of 1947, Page 72.