Crestwood Medical Center had submitted a certificate of need to develop a permanent angioplasty program after the hospital participated in a nationwide research trial on the procedure. Crestwood says angioplasty can be safely performed at hospitals without open-heart surgery backup, a claim backed by recently revised guidelines by the American College of Cardiology.
Huntsville (Ala.) Hospital, however, says Crestwood’s parent company, Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems, is driven to establish the angioplasty program by potential financial gains. Huntsville also contends that the ACC discourages angioplasty at hospitals without cardiac surgical backup if the community already has a program with surgical backup, which Huntsville has.
An administrative law judge will hear testimony from both sides and then make a recommendation to the Alabama Certificate of Need Review Board.
Related Articles on Angioplasty:
Alabama’s Crestwood, Huntsville Hospitals Continue Debate Over Angioplasty Plans
Study: 1 in 6 Angioplasty Patients Readmitted Within a Month of Surgery
Most Cardiologists Say Hospitals Without Surgery Can Offer Angioplasty
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