Ohio State's new $2 billion medical tower will pilfer small businesses

Julie Wilkes is the Global People Experience & Well-being executive at Accenture.

Small businesses around the nation have faced extreme financial hardships. For those who call Ohio home, the situation could be getting much worse.

The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center is constructing a brand-new hospital tower—the single largest capital project in OSU’s storied history.

This 26-story tower is estimated to cost nearly $2 billion — more than Dubai's Burj Khalifa — the tallest building in the world. The tower has enough steel to construct two Eiffel Towers and twice as much concrete as Ohio Stadium.

Although Ohio State has announced fractional fundraising success, that tower has to be paid by someone.

A May report from the Buckeye Institute highlights how the debt accumulated as a result of the Wexner expansion — and its interest— will be pilfered from the pockets of every single Ohioan.

With the looming cost of the new tower, Wexner will need to increase hospital prices, leading to bigger hospital bills for employers and patients.

Ohio businesses are footing the bill

The vast majority of these increased costs will be borne by Ohio’s business community, which offer the majority of health benefits for Ohioans. In order for small businesses to afford to pay their employees’ health bills, customers, staff and their families will pay the price.

This is particularly disconcerting when you consider that Ohioans already spend more on healthcare than residents in other states and experience poorer outcomes. Ohio is ranked 44th out of all 50 states for “health value,” meaning we pay more for worse care. Wexner in particular is also declining; according to a U.S. News and Health report, the famed James Cancer Center is no longer considered the best cancer center in Ohio.

Worse, a recent RAND study found that Ohio hospitals on average charge insurers 276% of what they charge Medicare for the same services.

More: Are Columbus hospital expansions good for patients? Buckeye Institute questions costs

That means that when hospitals charge Medicare recipients $100 for a routine procedure, patients with employer-sponsored healthcare coverage are charged $276. Unfortunately, this expensive hospital tower will only exacerbate those price disparities.

Hospitals can charge exorbitant rates for worse care

The Buckeye Institute report also highlights how hospital consolidation across Ohio has led to increased hospital bills.

Nearly half of all hospitals in Ohio are owned by seven corporate hospital systems.

Additionally, these corporate hospital systems are also buying-up independent physician practices, virtually eliminating any competition in the marketplace. The report cites that in areas with less than four competing hospitals, like Columbus, hospital bills are higher. With a lack of competition, these major systems can charge exorbitant rates for often equal or worse care.

I care deeply about developing a strong economy that allows small businesses to thrive. With a main focus of my businesses to be in the health and well-being field, I also care that everyone has access to good health carer and we continue to focus on ways to make health care affordable while supporting our medical community.

I applaud the Buckeye Institute for shedding light on this situation in Ohio. The last thing Ohio small businesses need is another bill to pay — especially one for $1.9 billion dollars plus interest. The cost of the Wexner tower and the lack of hospital competition in Ohio are an albatross around the necks of Ohio small businesses in an already difficult economic climate.

Julie Wilkes is the Global People Experience & Well-being executive at Accenture.

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohioans will be robbed by $2 billion Ohio State medical center tower