Illinois hospital gets nod to build over Belleville rival's objections

An Illinois state regulatory board has voted unanimously to approve plans to build a new hospital in O'Fallon, capping a nearly eight-month battle between two Belleville hospitals.

Memorial Hospital has been a staunch opponent of St. Elizabeth's Hospital's proposal to build a 144-bed hospital in O'Fallon to replace its aging 303-bed hospital in Belleville. St. Elizabeth's, a part of Springfield, Ill.-based Hospital Sisters Health System, said it needs a more modern facility with space for expanded ambulatory care.

Memorial, however, has argued that a new hospital in O'Fallon would constitute an unnecessary and unfair duplication of services when built after its soon-to-be-complete Memorial East Hospital in the nearby village of Shiloh. Plus, the hospital says the move would limit access for the high-acuity, vulnerable population that St. Elizabeth's currently serves in downtown Belleville.

The board voted 4-1 to approve a certificate of need for St. Elizabeth's move in January, but three board members were absent. The hospital needed five “yes” votes to gain approval, a threshold it surpassed this time with eight board members in attendance Tuesday, according to the Belleville News-Democrat.

Illinois is one of 36 states that retain certificate-of-need laws or regulations, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. State-based oversight of new construction was enabled by a 1974 federal law aimed at constraining unnecessary hospital expansions.

Approval for the new hospital is subject to the requirement that St. Elizabeth's keep about 200 employees in Belleville for at least two years, the News-Democrat reported. The city of Belleville opposes the move and is reportedly considering a legal appeal to the decision.

The new hospital will cost an estimated $253 million, and is expected to be completed sometime in 2018. St. Elizabeth's also gained the necessary approval for a $34 million building for ambulatory care and physician offices on the O'Fallon campus, according to the News-Democrat.

Memorial Hospital is evaluating its next steps now that Belleville will have one less hospital and the O'Fallon-Shiloh area will have one more than previously expected, hospital officials said.

“While we are disappointed by today's decision, our commitment to the Metro East community is unwavering,” Memorial Hospital said in a statement. “We have already begun to evaluate the needs at both our Belleville and Shiloh facilities, given this approval.”

St. Elizabeth's CEO Maryann Reese said the hospital was “thrilled” that it will be able to move forward with its plans that anticipate “the continued trend toward outpatient care.”

“The new medical campus will enhance our ability to develop an integrated-care-delivery model that will serve residents from across southwestern Illinois,” Reese said.