Tommy Calvert, Bexar County Commissioner, Precinct 4

January 7, 2021

Honorable Governor Greg Abbott

Governor, State of Texas
PO Box 12428
Austin, Texas 78711-2428

Dear Governor Abbott:

It has come to my attention that State contracted nurse staffing agencies, such as Crucial
Staffing and Angel Staffing are recruiting local nurses away from local hospitals during the
pandemic and reallocating the nurses within the same market at increased wages.

This poaching of staff, disrupts health care facilities during critical times and is problematic
for human resources departments to manage nursing staff and ensure that the healthcare sys-
tem is not put in a manpower crisis because of these staffing and contracting practices.

I wanted to bring this to your attention to ask your office to aide our local healthcare facili-
ties. University Health System, also known as Bexar County Hospital District, has had to
raise salaries for certain positions to minimize the impact.

We are asking that if these contracts are offered, that nurses are recruited from areas that are
less affected by increases in COVID patient care. We also can welcome nurses from other
states and areas that do not have medical shortages.
Because Bexar County has a high demand for nursing staff, and because we are providing
services to an array of other counties, the core staffing is not only essential for the care needs
of our local patients but also the needs of the patients who are sent to us from other counties.
And since these contracting staffing agencies require the nursing staff to leave within a day
or two, after they are poached from our system, there is no two week notice, which leaves
hospitals and medical response units of Bexar County in a critical bind, during a spike in
cases.
We are asking that these disruptive manpower processes be stopped, so that the critical care
units treating COVID patients in Bexar County do not become overrun due to shortage of
staffing caused by state staffing intermediaries.

Thank you for your consideration regarding this matter. Please call me if I can be of any assistance to you
and your team.

Yours for change,

Tommy Calvert,
Bexar County Commissioner, Tommy Calvert,
Precinct 4

CC: Nim Kidd, Chief of Texas Emergency Office of Governor Greg Abbott
Bexar County Legislative Delegation
Bexar County Commissioners Court
Honorable Nelson Wolff, County Judge, Bexar County
Honorable Ron Nirenberg, Mayor, City of San Antonio