State Board To Decide Fate Of Oak Forest Hospital
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (CBS/WBBM) -- A state board meets Tuesday to decide the fate of Cook County-operated Oak Forest Hospital.
As WBBM Newsradio 780's Bernie Tafoya reports, County Board President Toni Preckwinkle wants to end the hospital's days as an inpatient facility, and make it outpatient only.
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County officials hope they can convince the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board that other hospitals can pick up the slack on the inpatient side.
Last week, Preckwinkle warned the board that if it does not allow the county to turn Oak Forest Hospital into an outpatient clinic, it will be saddling the system with an unfunded mandate to keep fully operational a hospital it cannot afford.
A report by the state board last month said closing the hospital would increase the need for intensive care beds and nursing home beds in the area. It cautioned of an apparent "adverse impact on access to care," given the large number of poor patients the hospital serves.
A group of ministers says its members are prepared to go to jail protesting if the board agrees to close Oak Forest.
The County Board has already agreed to cut off funding for inpatients services at Oak Forest, effective June 1.
