The Louisiana State University board of supervisors has approved a plan that would close Huey P. Long Medical Center in Pineville, La., and direct inpatient and emergency services to other area hospitals, according to a report from The Advocate.
Under the agreement, Rapides Regional Medical Center and Christus St. Frances Cabrini Hospital, both based in Alexandria, La., will take on the inpatient and emergency care loads from Huey P. Long, effectively closing the hospital.
In June, LSU rolled out a major portion of its hospital privatization plan, which included the closure of W.O. Moss Regional Medical Center in Lake Charles. At that time, LSU was still working to find a private hospital partner for Huey P. Long.
The state legislature still must approve the closure of Huey P. Long, which will be expected next year. LSU had 10 hospitals within its system, but under Gov. Bobby Jindal's privatization plan, six had moved on to new owners while three closed. Lallie Kemp Medical Center in Independence is the sole public hospital that remains within LSU's health system. State officials have said the plan will save the state $100 million annually. In the 2012-13 fiscal year, LSU's health system laid off 2,340 employees.
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