Georgia Today: Hurricane Debby update; Criminal justice reform bill signed into law; Rural hospitals

Peter Biello: Welcome to the Georgia Today podcast from GPB News. Today is Tuesday, Aug. 6. I'm Peter Biello. On today's episode, officials assess the damage in South Georgia following heavy rain dropped by Tropical Storm Debby. Jon Ossoff's criminal justice reform bill has been signed into law; and we'll report on a grassroots effort to help hospitals return to rural Georgia. These stories and more are coming up on this edition of Georgia Today.

Story 1:

Peter Biello: The center of Tropical Storm Debby reached the Georgia coast late this morning. Authorities in South Georgia are reporting one death associated with the storm: In Moultrie, heavy winds and rain toppled a large tree onto a porch at a home, killing a 19-year-old man. Steady, soaking rain continues in many inland counties, with numerous road closures reported. In Bulloch County, local officials say a dam was breached and they encouraged residents near or downstream of Simmons Pond to seek shelter and avoid State Road 46 in the area. Gov. Brian Kemp is urging people to remain vigilant and stay off roads.

Brian Kemp: Do not let this storm lull you to sleep, as a lot of affected areas right now are not experiencing rain and high winds, but both models are showing that rain will come back.

Peter Biello: Kemp said that in the best case, the storm area will get another 4 or 5 inches of rain. Savannah appears to have escaped major flooding issues so far. Roads that flooded there last night are mostly clear today. For Georgia agriculture, it could take several weeks for a full assessment of the storm's damage. Deborah Tannenbaum of the USDA Farm Service Agency advises farmers to document damage as soon as possible.

Deborah Tannenbaum: The flooding is what's going to be the massive issue. It's a disaster. I mean, anyway you put it. And we're not going to see the the full impact until the flooding reaches its apex.

Peter Biello: Many South Georgia farmers and residents are still recovering from last year's Hurricane Idalia. Keep up with GPB storm coverage at GPB.org/storms.

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Prison

Story 2:

Peter Biello: Georgia U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff joined civil rights leaders today to announce his criminal justice reform bill has been signed into law. Amanda Andrews has more.

Amanda Andrews: The Federal Prison Oversight Act will require the Department of Justice to complete regular, unannounced inspections of all 122 federal prisons and publish the results within 60 days. The bill passed with bipartisan support with backing from the Correctional Officers Union. Former U.N. Ambassador Andrew Young says prison reform isn't about guilt; it's about responsibility.

Andrew Young: Meeting with people in jails all over the country and back all over the world and realizing that they are valuable part of our society, and we should help them reform and be involved in everything that's worthy about this democracy of ours.

Amanda Andrews: The bill will also create a new office within the DOJ to investigate abuse within prisons, and a confidential hotline for reporting issues. For GPB News, I'm Amanda Andrews.

Story 3:

Peter Biello: Georgia's Public Service Commission heard the final oral arguments today for and against allowing eminent domain to be used to build a new 4-mile rail spur through a majority Black community that opposes it. GPB's Grant Blankenship explains.

Grant Blankenship: The Sandersville Railroad seeks to build a 4-and-a-half-mile rail spur connecting a Sparta granite quarry to long distance rail lines running as far as New England. The issue before the PSC is whether the rail spur would be, quote, "a public good," as required by Georgia law before Sandersville railroad president Ben Tarbutton could take what he needs from landowners through eminent domain.

Ben Tarbutton: It's a good project for the people that it's going to employ; the county that's going to benefit from the tax dollars.

Grant Blankenship: That's one idea of public. For another, Southern Poverty Law Center attorney Jamie Rush points to her clients.

Jamie Rush: Yes, the public is here. Our clients have come from Sparta today to show that they're commit — committed to maintaining the sanctity of their property.

Peter Biello: PSC is expected to vote on the Sparta rail issue in coming weeks. For GPB News, I'm Grant Blankenship in Atlanta.

Credit: Pexels

Story 4:

Peter Biello: In just over a decade, 18 hospitals have closed in Georgia, and three-quarters of them served rural communities. And those that have managed to stay afloat have looked for lifelines, sometimes through consolidation with big city hospitals. Now, a couple of rural hospitals in Middle Georgia are trying a grassroots approach emphasizing local ownership, and they say it's working. GPB's Sofi Gratas has more.

Sofi Gratas: Walking down the halls of Washington County Regional Hospital in Sandersville, Pam Stuart says this place has always felt like home.

Pam Stuart: My mother was a food service manager and dietician here. I'd be in the kitchen with my mom, helping her get the food ready, take it, make sure it got up to the patients. I grew up here.

Sofi Gratas: Working as a candy striper and eventually a nurse, Stuart got to know the hospital well. She became CEO late last year.

Pam Stuart: Let's go to the ER. Let's go this way. Hey. How are you?

Sofi Gratas: Washington County Regional is small, but it's the only hospital within an hour of Macon or Augusta. Stuart admits the hospital, built in the '60s, needs some updating.

Pam Stuart: Old bed. Old bedside. I mean, nothing matches. Look at the chair over here that somebody has to sit in.

Sofi Gratas: She says people noticed.

Pam Stuart: Years ago, when you talked about Washington County Regional Medical Center in the community, you often heard "it's a Band-Aid station. I wouldn't take my dog there."

Sofi Gratas: But they didn't have the cash to change many things. So a few years back, the hospital signed an agreement to be managed by Augusta University Medical Center in hopes of getting out of crisis mode. Jim Croom, of the local hospital authority, says ultimately:

Jim Croom: They didn't really know how to run a rural hospital.

Sofi Gratas: And contracting with the doctors from Augusta was too expensive.

Jim Croom: We ended up with interns in the emergency room, but we had to pay them a pretty high amount of money per hour.

Sofi Gratas: Plus, Croom says, as patients were transferred out for care to the bigger, more modern Augusta hospital, profits followed the patients and local trust for the local brand took a hit. By the time Pam Stuart came back to Washington County, the hospital had been through layoffs — and a pandemic — and was considering a new management company.

Pam Stuart: When you talk about a management company and you're bringing in another one and I'm thinking, "Please don't."

Sofi Gratas: They did. This time with Kerry Trapnel and his company, Olathea Health Partners.

Jim Croom: They kept telling us this is the first time we've ever heard a plan.

Sofi Gratas: Trapnel started managing Washington County Regional in 2022. By cutting costly agency nurses, full-time nurses got a pay raise. Trapnel helped apply for over $2 million in grants, which staff say they didn't even know were available. He's also been working to correct misconceptions about the level of care available at the hospital, which is usually more than most people think. 80 miles away, at Monroe County hospital in Forsyth, which for years has also faced closure, Olathea is just starting the same process.

Megan Randall: I think this is the first time in our careers, for the most part, that we can breathe a little bit easier.

Sofi Gratas: Megan Randall is a longtime employee at Monroe, which recently cut ties with the much larger Atrium Health Navicent out of Macon.

Megan Randall: Having the ability to make decisions more at the local level in regards to our current needs is the biggest improvement, I guess I should say.

Sofi Gratas: Already, staff at both hospitals say Olathea's investments made under their local advice is leading to more admissions and financial stability. Out in the parking lot, Sandersville resident Derrick Dunn says he knows people who bypass Washington County Regional for what they see as bigger hospitals with better care.

Derrick Dunn: For a person to take a chance and go 20 miles away versus 10. That — that says a lot.

Sofi Gratas: Hearing about the new management, Dunn seems hopeful.

Derrick Dunn: I pray that they be able to reach out to the community and get them to trust them again.

Sofi Gratas: If they succeed in getting that trust. People like Dunn might keep health care closer to home for longer. For GPB News, I'm Sofi Gratas in Sandersville.

Story 5:

Peter Biello: Atlanta has approved a new blight tax on property owners who fail to maintain their premises. The city's council yesterday passed legislation aimed at holding negligent property owners accountable by addressing health and safety concerns. The measure allows municipal judges to significantly increase fines for deteriorating properties. Some members of Atlanta's historic preservation community say while they support the measure, they're also concerned the new tax might lead to the loss of more historic structures.

Story 6:

Peter Biello: Michael Bloomberg's organization, Bloomberg Philanthropy, says it will give $600 million to the endowments of four historically Black medical schools. The gifts, announced today are among the largest private donations to any historically Black college or university. Atlanta's Morehouse School of Medicine is getting $175 million. The massive gift is expected to relieve the medical school's rising costs and associated student debt.

Story 7:

Peter Biello: The Georgia Department of Transportation has launched a safe driving app to help prevent crashes and improve road safety. The Reach Home Safely app includes a driving score, feedback on driving behaviors, and contest rankings. The app allows drivers to participate in a contest for the title of safest driver. The Georgia DOT has teamed up with the Braves to provide contest prizes. There will be weekly, monthly and grand prize winners, and prizes include Braves merchandise, access, experiences and more.

Story 8:

Peter Biello: The Braves kick off a three-game series tonight at Truist Park against the Milwaukee Brewers. The Braves are currently in what is essentially a three-way tie for the National League Wild Card, while the Brewers have the lead in the National League Central. The Braves took the away series against the Brewers last month, two games to one.

Peter Biello: As always, thank you so much for tuning in to Georgia Today. If you want to learn more about any of these stories, go to GPB.org/news. And if you want to learn more in particular about the storm, go to GPB.org/storms. Subscribing to this podcast is a pretty good idea. It helps you stay on top of the news, so if you subscribe now, we'll pop up in your podcast feed automatically tomorrow afternoon. And if you got feedback for us, the best way to reach us is by email. The address is GeorgiaToday@GPB.org. I'm Peter Biello. Thanks again for listening. We'll see you tomorrow.

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For more on these stories and more, go to GPB.org/news