City of Detroit moves to ensure DMC Hospitals remain open to continue emergency and healthcare services for Detroiters
- Mayor’s request to extend DMC’s tax exemption statues through the Renaissance Zone Act (RZA) unanimously approved by City Council
- With RZA, DMC will be able to keep all hospitals open, continue emergency services and charity care serving uninsured and underinsured Detroiters
- DMC’s agreement calls for enhancing its health and wellness initiatives, community outreach and prevention programs for Detroiters
The City of Detroit has moved to ensure Detroit Medical Center hospitals and healthcare services remain open and accessible to Detroiters for years to come. Today, City Council unanimously approved Mayor Duggan’s request to support the DMC’s RZA 15-year extension, enabling the DMC to continue receiving vital tax exemptions.
“Equitable access to quality healthcare is a right, not a privilege, of every Detroit resident,” said Mayor Mike Duggan. “Today’s vote ensures every Detroiter will be able to receive top-level care, no matter their income level.”
The Renaissance Zone program is a collaborative effort between the City of Detroit, the County of Wayne, and the State of Michigan to give tax incentives to residents and businesses. This program works to encourage economic stability and development within the eight designated RZA areas of the City.
These tax incentives include a waiver of city income and utility users taxes, city corporate taxes, county property taxes, and state income tax or single business tax. The program applies to participants who live, own property, or businesses conducting business within the area and are not delinquent in any local, county, or state taxes.
The Michigan Strategic Fund (MSF) requires the City’s approval prior to any amendment of the DMC’s existing RZA.
Ensuring uninterrupted care for Detroit’s uninsured and underinsured
As part of an agreement with the City, DMC will continue to provide its emergency and health care services for Detroiters, ensuring care for the uninsured and underinsured. The hospital system will also maintain and enhance its health and wellness initiatives, community outreach and prevention programs and quality improvement programs. Additionally, DMC will maintain and support their supplier diversity program designed to provide opportunities for minority, women and Detroit based businesses to provide goods and services.
“The extension of this agreement between the Detroit Medical Center and the City of Detroit reflects a commitment of multiple parties to ensure our community maintains access to critical healthcare services they need and depend on,” said Brittany Lavis, Chief Executive Officer of the DMC. “The DMC is “Detroit’s” health system and our commitment to the community remains unwavering. Over the last 13 years the DMC has proudly provided more than $1.8 billion in care for the underserved and those in need. The agreement enables us to continue to be that safety net for healthcare that our community needs and maintain DMC's role in training care providers of the future who will serve communities like ours. We appreciate all the leaders from the City of Detroit, Wayne County and the State of Michigan who supported the extension.”
“This agreement as part of the DMC’s RZA extension request is vital to the quality of healthcare and health related programs for Detroiters,” said Chief Financial Officer, Jay Rising. “We’re glad to support this request because of its benefits to so many.”
About the DMC
The Detroit Medical Center is a leading academically integrated system in metropolitan Detroit and the largest healthcare provider in southeast Michigan. Their medical experts are nationally recognized and each year, hundreds of DMC doctors are included in the list of America’s Best Doctors™. A reputation for excellence draws patients to programs in oncology, organ transplant, cardiology, women’s services, neurosciences, stroke treatment, optometry, orthopedics, pediatrics, and rehabilitation. The DMC has more than 2,000 licensed beds and 3,000 affiliated physicians.