St. Dominic Health Services and River Oaks Hospital are hoping that strong community support will convince the Mississippi Department of Health to approve both groups' plans to build hospitals in Madison County, Miss., according to a report from WAPT News.
Residents said in the report that the new hospitals will improve access to care and eliminate the long commute to Jackson, Miss., hospitals that patients currently have to make to receive care in emergencies.
St. Dominic's Madison proposal includes 71 patient beds and would not depend on government or taxpayer funds to be completed, according to the report. River Oaks is proposing a 67-bed facility in Canton, Miss. Officials from St. Dominic's said even with the construction of the two hospitals, Madison County will still be behind other counties in the number of licensed hospital beds.
The Mississippi Department of Health is beginning a two-week administrative hearing that will decide the fate of both projects.
Read the WAPT report about the proposed Madison County hospitals.