Beshear Refuses To Reconsider Hospital Merger

{Frankfort, Kentucky}...Governor Steve Beshear refused Monday to reconsider his rejection of a proposal to merge University Hospital in Louisville with Jewish Hospital & St. Mary's HealthCare and Saint Joseph Health System. As governor, Beshear had final say on whether to allow University Hospital to be part of the deal. Beshear pointed to University Hospital's soaring profits in denying the request to reconsider, saying "University Hospital is clearly a facility with significant strengths." University Hospital's proposal to join with the religiously-affiliated hospital systems had raised eyebrows in Kentucky, and Beshear sided with critics in his position that the merger wasn't in the best interest of the state. Jewish Hospital & St. Mary's HealthCare and Saint Joseph Health System announced Friday they'd move ahead with a two-way merger.