The Northern Nye County Hospital District Board of Commissioners of Trustees set a special meeting for Oct. 29 at 5:30 p.m. to resolve a contract with Frontier Medical Group after district and clinic representatives said the temporary agreement is scheduled to expire at the end of the month.

The decision came after Dr. Coker, a physician representing Frontier Medical Group, reported clinic activity and raised scheduling needs tied to board meeting times. "Our total number of patients were a 189," Dr. Coker said, and staff materials presented payroll and collections figures for recent months. Dr. Coker said Frontier is seeing patients Tuesday through Thursday, offers telemedicine, and has been tracking provider and employee payroll costs and a $5,000 medical directorship fee.

The matter of a signed contract has been delayed by what the board described as a miscommunication between the district's attorney and Frontier. The district's attorney, Brian Coonsie, was identified in discussion as the attorney handling the contract draft. Trustees said a temporary contract had been prepared as part of a 60-day process that removed obstetrics and a quality control section; board members said the temporary arrangement was expected to expire on Oct. 30. Trustees directed staff to contact Quincy (spelled variously in meeting discussion) and the district attorney to reconcile language and obtain a finalized document before the expiration date.

Board members and the clinic discussed options to accommodate Frontier's request to be present in person for board meetings. Dr. Coker asked whether meetings could start at 5:30 p.m. or whether he should be allowed to close the clinic at 4:30 p.m. on meeting nights so he can appear in person. The board agreed to place the time change request on a later meeting agenda and scheduled the Oct. 29 special meeting to allow more time for the purchase-order and payment process and for revision and signature of the contract.

Public commenters and several trustees also raised a separate but related service issue: local ambulance transport. A public commenter told the board that "Currently, our ambulance cannot transport to the clinic we have here. They cannot be utilized for it unless REMSA is on our truck," and urged the district not to proceed in ways that would leave residents without accessible emergency transport. Trustees said they had not been given a full, formal explanation for the transport restriction and agreed to follow up with REMSA, the county medical director and the county attorney to clarify whether district ambulances can deliver patients to the clinic and what approvals, if any, are required.

A board member and clinic staff also addressed reports about the clinic’s X-ray equipment, saying the machine had been down for approximately one hour recently for a reboot and was otherwise operational. Trustees said they want clearer communications to the public to avoid rumors about service availability.

The Oct. 29 special meeting was scheduled to give staff and counsel additional time to produce a revised contract for board consideration; trustees said if necessary they would hold an emergency meeting before the temporary agreement expires.

What happens next: the board directed staff to obtain the latest contract draft from counsel, confirm the changes requested by Frontier (including the removal of obstetrics and quality-control language as discussed), and circulate the revised document ahead of the Oct. 29 special meeting so trustees can vote on final approval.