In denying the proposal, the department said the area’s primary care services are already inadequate and the opening of the hospital would lead Portland, Ore.-based Legacy Health to close its urgent care center in St. Helens.
The department denied a similar request by Columbia Health in October. The more recent proposal included a rural health clinic, but the proposal was still denied for a number of reasons including a $45 million cost to tax payers and the proposed facility’s lack of surgery and maternity services, according to the report.
Read The Oregonian report on Columbia Health District’s hospital proposal.
Read more coverage on Oregon hospitals:
– Oregon Releases Data on Hospital-Acquired Infection Rates
– Costs for Oregon’s Community Hospitals Rose 40 Percent in Past Four Years
