Cook County Resubmits Plan to Shut Down Oak Forest Hospital

The effort to shut down Oak Forest Hospital as an inpatient center hit a roadblock a few weeks ago when Cook County's plan failed to secure approval from the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board.

A new pitch to the state regulators features a 24-hour-a-day clinic as well as a Southland advisory board, reports Greg Hinz on his blog at Crain's Chicago Business.

Without public announcement, the county submitted paperwork for a crucial approval — known as a certificate of need — with the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board, which twice recently has said "no" to similar requests.

The latest version is somewhat different.

Oak Forest Hospital still would be closed as a medical center and be converted into an out-patient clinic. But the clinic's immediate care center — a walk-in facility for non-emergency cases — would be kept open 24 hours a day, up from 16 in the earlier filings. ...

But the main thing working in Cook County's favor is that there are new members of the state board, who were appointed last week by Gov. Pat Quinn.