The Pineville Utility Commission and Southeastern Kentucky Medical Center (formerly Pineville Community Hospital) have come to an agreement, according to Pineville Mayor Scott Madon.

The mayor said that they didn’t get the full amount that was owed, but both parties did reach an agreed amount that can be worked with. He also said they received some documentation that had been requested.

“We are satisfied at this time,” said Madon. “When the board sold the business of the hospital to (Americore) on May 7, they gave them six months from that date to close — which meant they had to satisfy some creditors. We are going to wait until that six months is up to see how they resolve who is responsible for paying the remaining balance.”

The mayor did not disclose exactly how much was paid due to a disclosure agreement with Americore.

Madon said the payment will get the hospital back on water and get them paying their monthly bill that they hadn’t been paying for some time.

“It’s a positive thing for the city, and I would think it would be for them to know that they are complying with city regulations and rules,” said Madon.

The mayor said the next step is to resolve the issue regarding the occupational tax.

“Now we’re going to have to dig in to see who is going to be responsible for the occupational (tax),” said Madon. “That’s money that has been taken out of employees’ checks. Somebody is responsible.”

The move by the hospital comes after weeks of scrutiny from the community about unpaid bills. In April, the City of Pineville placed a lien on the hospital building due to unpaid taxes and bills in the sum of $429,309.69.

Discussion reached a head when Madon threatened to turn off the water at the hospital if the bill wasn’t paid by Wednesday. Continuous lack of communication and criticism from the community brought Americore CEO and founder Grant White to town on June 13 to clear the air.

During a previous interview, White clarified that Americore purchased the hospital operations and assets but did not purchase the building. It was also during that meeting that the Americore CEO said he would need to look at the purchase agreement to see who is responsible for past due water bills.