New Orleans-based Ochsner Health System will assume operations at the state's safety net hospitals in Monroe and Shreveport, The News Star reports.
The hospitals' current operator BRF, former operator Baton Rouge-based Louisiana State University Health Care Services, and the state have exchanged letters of intent, according to the report.
While the Louisiana governor's office confirmed to The News Star the letters of intent had been exchanged, a spokesperson for LSU said the letters were still being drafted.
"Based on discussions I'm confident a solution can be reached to stabilize the hospitals and the [the] medical school," a spokesperson for the governor's office told The News Star.
BRF secured the contract to operate the two hospitals in 2013, but was quickly accused of being undercapitalized and inexperienced by the state and LSU. BRF contends the state funds it received to support the safety net hospitals were considerably less than the funds allocated to a private partner the state allows to lease facilities in New Orleans, causing BRF to be placed in a less-than-ideal financial situation, the report states.
LSU and the state have also filed separate breach of contract notices against BRF.
Because the hospitals work in conjunction with the New Orleans-based LSU School of Medicine, the medical school, BRF, LSU and the state must all agree to the deal, the report states.