212862 LSU Medical Center controversy

Tuesday, November 10, 2009: 2:50 PM

James Moises, MD , Clinical Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine and Neuroscience, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA
Charity Hospital has been shuttered since Hurricane Katrina. Rather than reopening the hospital, plans are being made to develop a new medical center run by LSU. Movement toward more private financing of patients and private production of hospital care is the objective of the current administration in Louisiana. Whereas the objective of a ‘world class medical center' is lofty, the financial realities may compromise the privatization objectives, leaving New Orleans without the requisite medical services that need to be provided.

Learning Objectives:
Describe the differences in community responsibility between hospital care that is private in nature versus a publicly owned hospital. Assess which services have been cut back due to the closure of Charity Hospital Determine the rate of return on investments required for the New LSU Medical Center to be financially viable. Evaluate of the economic recession on the public hospital market – specifically how increased demand for services are met with a decreased supply of services.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have been a director of emergency services at both Tulane Hospital and Charity Hospital and have lectured frequently on the issues of public hospital care and the post-Katrina situation since the shuttering of Charity.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

See more of: The Credit Crunch, Privatization, and the Future of Public Hospitals
See more of: Health Equity and Public Hospitals Caucus