Evergreen Healthcare’s commitment to provide services outside the walls of our hospital is unique on the Eastside and contributes significantly to the health and well-being of our community. Specialized care for the area’s seniors, free health clinics for the uninsured and health education classes for the entire community are just a few of the services we’re able to provide thanks to support of the King County Public Hospital District No. 2 levy.
Never heard of King County Public Hospital District No. 2? You’re probably not alone! It’s actually Evergreen Healthcare’s rather long legal name, which dates back to the formation of the District in the late 1960s. That’s when residents of northeast King County decided the best way to provide hospital services to their growing area was by forming a public hospital district, much in the same way a fire district or a school district provides services. The District is governed by five publicly elected Commissioners, whose duty is to make sure community health needs are being addressed.
Levy money paid to King County Public Hospital District No. 2 was instrumental in building the original Evergreen General Hospital, which opened in 1972. Today, the levy money is used to provide much-needed community health services – the kinds of services not all hospitals can provide because they can’t afford them on their own. There isn’t profit in providing free vaccinations for schoolchildren or health classes for seniors, or in helping the community’s underinsured connect with preventive care. But because Evergreen is owned by the community, we have a responsibility to provide these services regardless of their profitability.
When established in the late 1960s, King County Public Hospital District No. 2 closely followed the boundaries of the Northshore and Lake Washington school districts. The area grew in 2000, when Evergreen was petitioned by the grassroots group Concerned Citizens of Duvall with a request that Duvall be annexed to the Evergreen District so we could open a primary care clinic there. Evergreen gave the idea careful consideration, and held town hall meetings in Duvall to explain the costs of annexation and to make sure it was something the community really wanted. Convinced of the need for services and the support of the Duvall community, the annexation issue was placed on the ballot in November 2000, and received an impressive 71 percent “yes” vote.
About the Evergreen Levy
Roughly $13.6 million of Evergreen Healthcare’s annual operating budget comes from the levy money paid to King County Public Hospital District No. 2. Some of this money is used to pay for buildings and equipment; the rest funds innovative community health programs to meet the diverse needs of the area we serve. The taxation rate for 2007 is $.29 per thousand, or $87 for a $300,000 home.
District Boundaries
King County Public Hospital District No. 2 includes Bothell, Duvall, Kenmore, Kirkland, Redmond, Woodinville, part of Sammamish and parts of unincorporated northeast King County.