Ochsner, Lafayette General announce merger

Morgan City’s Teche Regional Medical Center isn’t the only new south Louisiana hospital connection for Ochsner Health System.

Ocshner, Louisiana’s largest private employer and the operator of a growing number of health care centers around the state, and the board of Lafayette General Medical Center announced plans to merge Wednesday.

St. Mary Hospital Service District No. 2 is awaiting the Louisiana attorney general’s approval for a separate lease agreement under which Ochsner would operate Teche Regional, replacing LifePoint Health. Approval is expected at the first of net month.

Company officials have promised expanded services at Teche Regional and the benefits that come from being part of a large health care network.

The negotiations with Ochsner also offered reassurance that Teche Regional would stay open in an era when rural hospitals are under economic pressure.

Lafayette General is one of the biggest players in the regional health care market centering on Lafayette. Under changes in the public hospital system during the Jindal administration, Lafayette General also assumed the management of the former University Medical Center, now known as University Hospital & Clinics.

“As part of the agreement, Lafayette General will anchor services as the regional healthcare hub in Southwest Louisiana for the statewide health system, and Ochsner will invest $365 million in capital and resources in Acadiana over the next 10 years,” according to a joint press release from Ochsner and Lafayette General.

Ocshner is promising a $50 million expansion in services at Lafayette General, including pediatrics, women’s health, cancer care and behavioral health.

Ocshner is also offering greater financial stability for University Hospital, which would be a benefit for people who need health care they can’t afford. And a $10 million fund will be created and administered by the Lafayette General board to promote community wellness, the press release said.

Ochsner says it will raise the minimum pay for hospital employees to $12 an hour and increase the number of residency positions at the medical center by 48 to go with the 75 at University Hospital. Physicians enter residency after graduating from medical school and often go into practice near where they were residents.