A growing number of U.S. hospitals are relocating to more affluent areas, partly because of aging facilities, and the desire for greater accessibility and more privately insured patients, according to a Kaiser Health News report.
One hospital looking to relocate is financially troubled St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Belleville, Ill. The Catholic hospital is trying to get state approval to build a $300 million facility seven miles northeast of its current location in O’Fallon, Ill., a wealthier and faster-growing area, according to the report.
Hospital relocations are planned or underway in many other states areas across the country as well, including in South and Central Florida, eastern Tennessee, central Georgia, Birmingham, Ala., and northeast Ohio, according to Kaiser Health News.
For instance, Nashville, Tenn.-based Hospital Corporation of America plans to close Plantation (Fla.) General Hospital and open a new hospital in more affluent Davie, near a medical school. Knoxville, Tenn.-based Tennova Healthcare is also moving its flagship facility near downtown Knoxville, which is closer to higher-income suburbs, according to Kaiser Health News.
In Ohio, Lakewood Hospital, a Cleveland Clinic hospital, is slated to close next year. According to the report, patients will be directed to Cleveland Clinic's newer Fairview Hospital three miles away or to another facility being built in Avon, 13 miles away. The report notes that both locations are in higher-income areas.
Hospitals can decrease the percent of uninsured and lower-paying Medicaid patients, while increasing the proportion of privately insured patients, by relocating to more affluent areas, the report reads. However, Kaiser Health News points out, relocations often bring about anger from those left behind, who have concerns about job cuts and of access to care, particularly for the poor.
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