Ochsner Announces Agreement To Purchase Three New Orleans Hospitals

New Orleans, LA - Ochsner Health System today announced a definitive agreement to purchase three New Orleans hospitals from Tenet Healthcare Corporation: Kenner Regional Medical Center, Kenner, LA; Meadowcrest Hospital, Gretna, LA; Memorial Medical Center, New Orleans, LA; New Orleans Surgery and Heart Institute (NOSHI) opening Fall 2006. Meadowcrest Hospital and Kenner Regional Medical Center will remain open as acute-care facilities. Ochsner endorses Tenet's plans to open the New Orleans Surgery and Heart Institute as a surgical hospital on the campus of Memorial Medical Center in the Fall of 2006.

Nearly one year post-Katrina, the New Orleans community still faces many challenges. Healthcare is no exception. "Despite the challenges Ochsner faced, we recognized the importance of rebuilding the city's healthcare infrastructure. We began discussions with Tenet in late 2005 regarding a partnership or other affiliation, and subsequently came to a mutual decision for Ochsner to purchase these hospitals from Tenet and operate them within our system," explains Warner Thomas, President/Chief Operating Officer of Ochsner Health System.

SOURCE: Ochsner Health System