17:1519.2

Title 17. Education

Chapter 4. Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College

Part II. Divisions, Branches and Departments

Subpart C-2. Lsu Health Sciences Center--Health Care Services Division

17:1519.2 State hospitals operated by the Board of Supervisors of Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College as part of the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center

A. (1) The board shall own and operate the hospitals set forth in Subsection B, and any successor entities, in its discretion, as more specifically provided in this Subpart.

(2) The Board of Regents shall not include the division in either its funding formula or master planning process.

B. (1) The LSU Health Sciences Center-New Orleans shall be responsible for the following hospitals, including all programs and facilities thereof:

(a) Medical Center of Louisiana at New Orleans.

(b) Earl K. Long Medical Center in Baton Rouge.

(d) Leonard J. Chabert Medical Center in Houma.

(e) Lallie Kemp Regional Medical Center in Independence.

(f) Bogalusa Medical Center in Bogalusa.

(g) W. O. Moss Regional Medical Center in Lake Charles.

(h) University Medical Center in Baton Rouge.

(i) Repealed by Acts 2007, No. 220, § 2, eff. July 2, 2007.

(2) Operation and management of the LSU HSC-NO hospitals shall be the responsibility of the board pursuant to this Subpart.

(3) LSU Health Sciences Center-Shreveport shall be responsible for the following hospitals, including all programs and facilities thereof:

(a) University Hospital Shreveport.

(b) E. A. Conway Medical Center in Monroe.

(4) Operation and management of the LSU HSC-S hospitals shall be the responsibility of the board pursuant to R.S. 17:1517.

<Subsec. C effective until Dec. 31, 2019. See italic note following this section.>

C. (1) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, if the board determines it is in the best interest of the state, the legislature has authorized the closure of a hospital, and the building is no longer being used for the provision of healthcare services, or the board receives an inquiry from a financially viable party regarding the purchase of a hospital listed in Subsection B of this Section, hereafter in this Section referred to as the property, the board shall notify the commissioner of administration within five business days that it is contemplating the option of selling the property or is in receipt of such an inquiry. The board shall participate in and cooperate with the commissioner of administration in reviewing the benefits and consequences of selling the property.

(2) The review by the board and the commissioner of administration shall include, at a minimum, an assessment of the impact a sale of the property may have on the provision of healthcare in the region, the impact on graduate medical education, any contractual or operational issues with other parties that need to be addressed prior to executing a contract of sale, purchase agreement, or other type of agreement, and a cost-benefit analysis addressing the potential short-term and long-term financial advantages and disadvantages of proceeding with the sale. The commissioner shall also obtain fair market value appraisals from up to three Louisiana certified appraisers to ascertain the current value of the property. A report of such information and the recommendations of the board and the commissioner shall be submitted to the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget immediately upon its completion.

(3) Prior to taking any action which would result or is expected to result in the sale of the property as provided by law, the commissioner of administration shall notify the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget in writing that the board and commissioner are recommending that the state proceed with such a sale. The commissioner shall instruct the board to contact the committee to request preliminary authorization to pursue the sale of the property based upon the positive outcome of the review provided for in Paragraph (2) of this Subsection. The committee shall consider the board’s request no less than thirty days after the date that it is submitted to the committee. If the board’s request is approved by the committee, it shall be submitted to the legislature for approval by a majority vote of the elected members of each house of the legislature. If the legislature is not in session, approval of the legislature may be obtained in accordance with the procedures provided in R.S. 39:87.

(4) Notwithstanding the provisions of R.S. 41:140 to the contrary, upon receipt of the approval by the committee and legislature to proceed with the exploration of the sale of the property, the board shall work with the commissioner to develop a solicitation for offers to sell the property, fixing the minimum price and terms of sale to be made with reference to the property. The solicitation shall be developed such that it is within the parameters approved by the committee and the legislature. Upon completion of the solicitation, the board shall advertise the solicitation for offers electronically for forty-five days and shall also advertise in the newspapers in general circulation in the municipality where the property is located and in major metropolitan areas across the state for a minimum of three times in forty-five days. During this period, the board and the commissioner shall resolve any outstanding contractual or operational issues with other parties that may affect the sale of the property. The board and the commissioner shall review the offers and negotiate with the respondents for a period of no less than thirty days. If the board and commissioner agree that an acceptable offer has been received, then the board shall submit the proposed agreement to the committee for its review and approval. The agreement shall be within the preliminary parameters approved by the committee and the legislature. The committee shall consider the proposed agreement not less than thirty days after submission of the agreement. No agreement shall be officially confected prior to approval of the committee.

(5) Nothing contained in this Subsection, nor any approval of the committee or legislature relative to a proposed sale, shall be construed as authorizing the board to close a hospital or an emergency room or absolving the board of its responsibilities for any medical center as provided by law.

Acts 2003, No. 906, § 1, eff. July 1, 2003. Amended by Acts 2004, No. 717, § 1; Acts 2007, No. 220, § 1, eff. July 2, 2007; Acts 2016, No. 537, § 1, eff. June 17, 2016; Acts 2017, No. 97, § 1.