Hospitals board hesitates at delegating contract authority

The Cook County Health and Hospitals System postponed for a second time Thursday turning over control of its contracts to its finance committee, rather than the entire board as is now the practice.

The board first had considered the change in its structure on Oct. 3, but delayed the approval of the measure after board members expressed concerns the wording was too broad and gave the finance committee too much control over contracts.

"This is going to need some limitations on it," said board member Ben Greenspan on Oct. 3.

Thursday, members were presented with an amendment that read "The System Board delegates to this Committee the authority to act on behalf of the System Board in all matters regarding contracts for supplies, materials and equipment and contractual services for the system."

But the measure was again postponed Thursday when a board member suggested there perhaps should be a limit on contract amounts that would be delegated to the finance committee.

The finance committee is chaired by David Carvalho, who was a key player in the board's recent initial refusal to share with the public its $1.1 billion budget passed Oct. 3. The board later released some budget information Oct. 10.