Burlington-based University of Vermont Medical Center's president and COO, Stephen Leffler, MD, posted a letter to the community encouraging support for a new $130 million ASC, according to a May 8 report from the Burlington Free Press.
Dr. Leffler said in the letter that he receives calls and letters every week from patients waiting a long time for surgeries, adding that the ASC could provide them with quicker access as well as keep costs down.
Significant opposition to the center is coming from two rural hospitals — Copley Hospital in Morrisville, Vt., and Northwestern Medical Center in St. Albans, Vt. — and from AFT-VT Healthcare, a union representing 5,000 healthcare workers.
The hospitals opposed to the ASC said the project would steal surgical patients, threatening their financial stability. The union is concerned because it said UVM Medical Center is already understaffed, and it is concerned there will be no workers to care for patients at a new facility.
A public hearing will be held May 20 for a certificate of need for the new ASC, according to the report. The $130 million center is one of the most expensive projects for which the system has sought approval.
It would replace the five operating rooms at the Fanny Allen Campus and add three ORs. About half the staff needed for the facility will come from Fanny Allen's ORs when they are closed to use the space for other services. The hospital would need to recruit 29 new registered nurses for the ASC.