(a) There is hereby created the Virgin Islands Government Hospitals and Health Facilities Corporation. The corporation is a body corporate and politic constituting a public benefit corporation of the Government of the Virgin Islands. It shall have those powers and duties expressly provided by law and no others.
(b) The corporation shall be administered by a Board of Directors consisting of fifteen members as follows: the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, the Commissioner of Finance, and one other member of the Governor's Cabinet as the Governor, or his designee may decide; six persons representing St. Croix who shall be appointed by the Governor from the members of the Corporation's District Governing Board for St. Croix (one of whom shall be that District Board's elected Chairman and two of whom shall be a doctor and a nurse, and elected by their respective members to serve on the District's Governing Board); and four persons representing St. Thomas and two persons representing St. John, all of whom shall be appointed by the Governor from the members of the Corporation's District Governing Board for St. Thomas-St. John (one of whom shall be that District Board's elected Chairman and two of whom shall be a doctor and a nurse, and elected by their respective members to serve on the District's Governing Board). No person appointed to represent an island on either the Board of Directors or a District Governing Board may reside on an island different from that which he has been appointed to represent.
(c) All non-cabinet members of the Board of Directors shall serve terms of three years, except that initial appointments shall be staggered so that no more than four members' terms shall expire in the same twelve-month period; provided, however, that no member appointed from a District Board may serve beyond the term of his membership on the District Board.
(d) Non-government members shall receive $50 for each day or portion thereof spent on the official business of the Board of Directors. No other compensation shall be awarded, but each member shall be reimbursed for actual and necessary expenses incurred by them in the performance of their official duties. No employee of the Government of the Virgin Islands subject to supervision by the corporation or who is a member of the same collective bargaining unit as an employee subject to supervision by the corporation, except one doctor and one nurse, and from each District, may serve as a member of the Board of Directors of the Corporation or as a member of a District Governing Board.
(e) The Board of Directors shall elect from among its members a chairman and such other officers as it may deem appropriate. Officers shall serve coincidental with their term of appointment or in the case of Cabinet members not to exceed three years, and may be re-elected; provided, however that the chairman may not succeed himself and no successor chairman shall be elected from the island district of the immediate preceding chairman.
(f) The Board of Directors shall meet at such times and in such places as it deems necessary, but not less than once each quarter; provided, however, that no two consecutive meetings shall be in the same island district without approval of two-thirds of the members present and voting; provided further, that at least one meeting per year shall be held on the island of St. John.
(g) The corporation shall have two district governing boards, one for the District of St. Croix and one for the District of St. Thomas-St. John. Each district board shall have nine members, all of whom shall represent their respective island district. At least two members of the St. Thomas-St. John District Board shall represent St. John. District Board members shall serve terms of three years. All members of district boards shall be appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate, except that two of the members shall be a doctor and a nurse, and elected from their respective members to serve on the district board. Upon nomination of a district board member, the Governor shall declare whether the nominee shall also be appointed to the Board of Directors of the corporation. Each district board shall elect its own chairman and such other officers as it deems appropriate. Members of each district board shall receive $50 for each day or part thereof spent on the official business of the district board, and shall be reimbursed for actual and necessary expenses incurred by them in the performance of their official duties. Not more than two of the non-elected members of each district board may be employees of the Government of the Virgin Islands. No employee subject to supervision by the corporation or who is a member of the same collective bargaining unit as an employee subject to supervision by the corporation, except one doctor and one nurse, and elected by their respective members, may serve as a member of a district board. Operating costs for each District Board shall be charged to the hospital in the respective district. For purposes of this section, “for cause” is defined as any violation of the bylaws of the corporation.
(h) Any member of the Board of Directors or a District Governing Board may be removed for cause by the Governor.
(i) Notwithstanding Title 3, section 65a, Virgin Islands Code, each member of the Board of Directors and each member of the District Boards shall continue to serve until his successor is qualified. Vacancies occurring during the term of any member of the Board of Directors or the District Boards shall be filled in the manner of the original appointment for the unexpired term.
(j) The Board of Directors shall formulate and determine hospital policy and planning for health care delivery at the territorial level. It shall coordinate hospital policy, planning and decisions between the two districts to ensure efficient and coordinated hospital policy direction between the districts. The District Governing Boards shall formulate and determine hospital policy and planning for health care delivery for their respective districts consistent with the hospital policy and planning established by the Board of Directors for the Territory. In the event of a dispute between the District Boards, or between a District Board and the Board of Directors, the Board of Directors shall resolve the dispute by majority vote. The Board of Directors and the District Governing Boards shall delegate management operations to the appropriate staff and hold the staff accountable for the execution of hospital policy decisions. No Board member or District Board member shall become involved in the day-to-day management operations of the hospitals or health care facilities.