WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Tenn. (WTVF) — Williamson County leaders are days away from deciding whether to sign a letter of intent that would move the potential sale of Williamson Health to Ascension St. Thomas closer to reality — even as questions mount about the buyer following a medication mix-up that left patients paralyzed.
The letter of intent, or LOI, would allow the two parties to talk and investigate each other for 120 days, with December 31 targeted as the date to finalize the sale.
The decision comes as Ascension St. Thomas is under investigation for a medication mix-up at its Midtown Nashville location that left two patients paralyzed and others with life-altering injuries.
County Mayor Andy Marshall said the deal is the result of years of research and stands by the timeline for the special called meeting.
"Everything's in place for us to continue to move forward," Marshall said.
Marshall said safety concerns will be addressed once the LOI is signed.
"Once the LOI is signed the first thing we dig into is safety issues and things like that, because that is top of mind right now," Marshall said.
On the question of whether the investigation into Ascension St. Thomas warrants a pause, Marshall pushed back.
"To say we need to pause to do that — I would say it's already been done," Marshall said.
Commissioner Bill Petty has pushed to bring on an independent advisor to help navigate what is a near-billion-dollar deal — a motion that has been tabled before. Petty said he wants to slow down.
"What I would like to see is we deferred the LOI," Petty said.
Petty acknowledged the weight of the Ascension St. Thomas investigation on the decision.
"The term has been 'lightning strikes.' Yeah, this was a big lightning strike though," he said.
Petty also emphasized the stakes of the decision for the county.
“This is our ‘big bang,’ so I wanna make sure we get it right... We don’t have to make this sale,” Petty said. “This is the biggest decision this county commissioner will ever make, probably.”
Williamson County residents have been closely watching the situation unfold. Some said they understand the concern but offered perspective on the investigation.
"Every Hospital system has errors, has mistakes. Who's to say there isn't anything Williamson health has done," one constituent said.
Others said the uncertainty is unsettling.
"I get why people are nervous about Ascension buying Williamson... It's scary, yeah it's scary" one resident said.
Wednesday's meeting will be the first for nine new commissioners and new Mayor Andy Marshall.
Do you have more information about this story? You can email me at Amanda.Roberts@NewsChannel5.com
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