The Habersham County Board of Commissioners has scheduled a called meeting for Wednesday, March 1, to vote on creating a new position to oversee Total Fitness. The county is taking over the fitness program from Habersham Medical Center on March 6.
Wednesday’s called meeting begins at 5 p.m. and is open to the public. It will be held in the commission conference room at the Habersham County Administration Building in Clarkesville. The meeting will also be streamed live on the county website.
A doctor from Medlink in Demorest attended the Habersham County Hospital Authority meeting last week. Dr. Derek Klemm inquired as to what services the hospital may discontinue, such as Total Fitness, that Medlink could possibly pick up in the future for the community. It is unclear at this point whether the county has pursued that as an option for Total Fitness.
‘Kind of new for us’
On Monday, several dozen Total Fitness members met with Habersham County Manager Alicia Vaughn and Parks and Recreation Director Brooke Whitmire at the county recreation building. It was a chance for members to offer their input ahead of the county taking over the program next week.
Habersham Medical Center recently cut Total Fitness from its budget to save money. The hospital is donating its gym equipment to the county. The Habersham County Parks and Recreation Department will run the program, which currently has about 550 members.
“This is kind of new for us, so be very patient with us as we work through this,” Vaughn told those in attendance at Monday’s meeting.
Vaughn explained to members that Total Fitness was losing money and that is why the hospital decided to close the facility. She said the hospital ran the program with one full-time employee and three part-time employees. The hospital also rented space from the county at the recreation building to house the fitness center.
People have questioned whether it’s a good move for the county to take over a program that is losing money, especially when there are other fitness centers in the county.
Vaughn explained the county will only have to add one full-time person to oversee the operation. She said the county has enough part-time employees already on staff and, since the county owns the facility, there will be no rent payment.
Fees and insurance
It’s still unclear how much the county will charge for memberships. There was some consensus at Monday’s meeting that discounts should be offered for senior citizens and military/veterans.
According to Vaughn, the county will continue to recognize the Silver Sneakers program, as well as other fitness programs offered by Medicare. One challenge with these programs, she said, is that they are based on a per-visit reimbursement plan for services provided, and a set fee would be difficult for those members. A flat monthly fee wouldn’t work with those programs because Medicare pays $3 per visit for up to 10 visits in a month and reimburses for those services in the next month.
While some have criticized the county’s decision to rescue Total Fitness, current members who enjoy the small, “unintimidating” workout center and social interaction, say they’re grateful. They also appreciated the opportunity to offer their input into the future of a program that many of them have come to rely on through the years.
“I especially appreciated the fact the county solicited input from the members and an employee [from Total Fitness],” says Barbara Nelleson, “because they are the ones that have the pulse of what’s going on in the facility.”
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