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Southern
Regional Health System and Henry Medical
Center Reach Agreement on Expansion Project
Southern Regional Health System (SRHS) and Henry Medical Center (HMC) have
announced that they have reached an agreement on a proposed 91-bed
expansion project at HMC. Henry Medical Center will begin their
expansion project for 71 beds immediately, with
20 additional beds placed in service as HMC achieves optimal occupancy (in
accordance with State utilization guidelines). Eventually, this will give
HMC the 91 beds they have requested from the State. An appeal hearing
before the Health Planning Review Board would have commenced on February
2, if an agreement had not been reached.
“We are pleased to reach an agreement with HMC leadership that makes sense
for both institutions,” says Ed Bonn, president and CEO, Southern Regional
Health System. “This agreement avoids an expensive legal process and
allows our hospitals to utilize our health care resources more
judiciously. This is the right thing for our community.”
According to Sam Ahern, president and CEO, Henry Medical Center, "We are
pleased that our expansion will not be delayed any longer. We appreciate
the willingness of Southern Regional Health System to work with us on this
issue. While we disagreed on the scope of our expansion, Southern Regional
maintained at the outset that our hospital should grow. We appreciate
their efforts to keep the dialogue open.”
The
expansion project is scheduled to begin in late Spring and is expected to
be complete in the Summer of 2007.
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