Washington State

Office of the Attorney General

Attorney General

Bob Ferguson

AGO 1953 NO. 165 >

Commissioners of public hospital districts may establish rates to be charged for hospital rooms and medical care, but these rates are not controlling upon the state department of health since services rendered for this department are subject to contract between the department and the vendor.

AGO 1958 NO. 198 >

1.  The legislature has the power to prohibit or restrict the right of employees of private hospitals to strike if a substitute such as compulsory arbitration or mediation is provided to meet the requirement of due process.  2.  Employees of hospitals operated by the state, its political subdivisions or municipal corporations, absent express legislation to the contrary, do not have the right to strike.  3.  The legislature has the power to compel hospitals and hospital employees to submit their labor disputes to arbitration, the award of the arbitrators being binding on both parties, provided that sufficient standards are provided to govern the arbitrators in determining such disputes.

AGO 1958 NO. 219 >

In counties where no county tuberculosis hospitals exist, the board of trustees of the county general hospital may provide for a department therein to care for tubercular patients.

AGO 1954 NO. 291 >

County hospitals are not required by statute to observe the legal holidays defined by law but only those designated by the board of trustees of such institutions.

AGO 1954 NO. 336 >

County commissioners have the power to fix the budget of the county hospitals.  The board of trustees of a county hospital, through the general superintendent, has the power to hire and classify employees, but the county commissioners fix the budgetary allocation for salaries for each classification.