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Clarke Heidrick is former chairman of Travis County's health care district, Central Health, and in 2004 led the successful initiative to create the district. He will be honored in April at the Seventh Annual University Medical Center Brackenridge luncheon for his long-standing commitment to providing Austin with quality medical services.
Heidrick began practicing law in 1977 and currently works as an attorney at Graves, Dougherty, Hearon & Moody where he also serves as chairman of the firm's board of directors. Heidrick holds, or has held, leadership positions in several local organizations, including the Shivers Cancer Foundation, Rebekah Baines Johnson Center and the United Way Capital Area organization. He began his term as chairman of the Austin Chamber of Commerce on Jan. 1.
What should Central Health do to reach a balance between its growth and budget?
What Central Health probably needs to do is increase its tax rate modestly [over the next two to three years]. It will need to carefully manage its expenses and probably cut some expenses. One of the big projects Central Health has pursued is the construction of a new clinic on Braker Lane, which had some controversy. When we open a clinic like that, we're going to pull some patients from other clinics, and, at some point, we need to close some clinics that are not as efficient. You have to close things, and government organizations aren't as good as they might be at closing things.
