Spring Grove Hospital Center is the public psychiatric hospital serving Baltimore, Howard, Anne Arundel, Prince George’s Counties, and Baltimore City. It has 375 beds and approximately 800 staff.
On the Board of Public Works Meeting agenda on Wednesday, May 11th, the Governor has proposed a 10-year lease to provide the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) with Spring Grove's campus for the cost of $1. Other than expanding the acreage of UMBC, the lease does nothing to enhance patient support and services and does nothing to improve the infrastructure and maintenance of the hospital.
The BPW agenda (pgs 186-187) states “This lease aligns with the implementation of the MDH 2041 Facility Master Plan and will allow MDH to continue to operate and maintain the property for the foreseeable future.”
This transfer would essentially put a Closed sign on Spring Grove without a clear plan for the future of patients and staff. The need for in-patient psychiatric treatment only continues to grow, and this lease creates no new beds while closing one of the state's largest facilities.
AFSCME strongly opposes the privatization of this hospital and the services it provides. The need for the services and supports Spring Grove provides must be maintained and enhanced, not shuttered. Send a letter urging the members of the Board of Public Works to reject these items today!
AFSCME members are coming together to fight back against this attempt at privatization. This year, we stopped the General Assembly from funding the first year of Hogan's facilities master plan. The next Governor should decide the fate of these facilities. We urge the Board of Public Works to reject this proposal and stop Governor Hogan from carrying out his privatization agenda. Send a letter today!
