Tarrant County Commissioners requested an $800 million bond to help fund $1.2 billion in projects for Fort Worth, Texas-based JPS Health Network, the Star-Telegram reports.
Here are three insights:
1. The projects would include a new outpatient surgery center, a new behavioral and mental health hospital, four regional medical centers, increased bed space at Fort Worth-based John Peter Smith Hospital and expanded cancer services.
2. It's the county's first bond request since 1985. The commissioners want voters to approve up to $800 million but don't aim to use that much, a county administrator told the Star-Telegram.
3. An outpatient surgery center would free up room in the hospital's emergency room and benefit patients needing elective surgery. Non-emergency procedures currently take place in the same space as emergency operations, such as gunshot wounds and car accident injuries, as JPS is the county's only Level 1 trauma center.