Gwinnett hospital's open heart program challenged

Officials with Gwinnett Medical Center hope its timetable to start-up a new open heart program will not be derailed by appeals filed by three Atlanta-area hospitals. The Gwinnett Daily Post reports Piedmont Hospital, Emory University Hospital and Emory Crawford-Long Hospital filed paperwork with the state Department of Community Health last week. The hospitals want the agency to reverse its approval in June of Gwinnett Medical Center’s new open heart program. A planned expansion for the program is scheduled to begin construction in July of next year, with the program start-up slated for late 2010. A decision on the appeals could come by early November.

Gwinnett hospital lobbies for open heart services

Gwinnett Medical Center is trying to get state approval of an open-heart surgery facility at its Lawrenceville campus. The hospital has received nearly 800 letters of support in its lobbying efforts. Hospital officials say Gwinnett is the nation’s largest county without open heart services. If the certificate is approved, it could take 3-5 years for Gwinnett’s Medical Center to have open-heart services up and running.