8.01.12 Even more so than political corruption, what has set Louisiana apart from other states is its extensive network of state-run charity hospitals. Some would say that for this state to do anything that others do not is a compelling reason to stop it right now. Many other people value the mission of the university hospitals, where resident doctors and dedicated staffs care for those with nowhere else to go.

For some of the latter, compassion is mixed with the desire not to see the huddled masses crowding into the private and community hospitals they use.

Regardless of how the LSU-run system of public hospitals is viewed, the recently announced reduction of services and employees marks the beginning of its end. The ten healthcare facilities might remain, with residency programs in some of them, but who owns or operates each, offering which services, will be determined during the transition year that began this week.

Gov. Bobby Jindal, for as long as he is governor, will preside over the largest transformation in state government in generations. Yet this change is brought about not by him but by Congress, which last month slashed the state's Medicaid program, with the promise of more cuts to come.

 

Read the full story at The Shreveport Times.