City of Lakewood Consultant Huron Releases Final Analysis of Proposed Plan for Lakewood Hospital

Lakewood city officials received the final report today from Huron Consulting Group, an independent national consulting firm hired by the City of Lakewood to assist the city in its due diligence following a January 2015 proposal by the Cleveland Clinic and Lakewood Hospital Association over the future of Lakewood Hospital.

The initial phase of Huron’s work, released in a report on July 14, was to advise the city on current healthcare trends, including population health and conversions of acute care hospitals into ambulatory centers.

The final report received today details the remaining phases of Huron’s consultancy for the city, which included reviewing the analysis and recommendations made by Subsidium Healthcare in its report to LHA; reviewing the obligations contained in the 1996 definitive agreement between the Cleveland Clinic and LHA; and analyzing Lakewood Hospital’s financial position.

Huron’s final report to the City of Lakewood is available online, and its lead consultant, John Bodine, will discuss Huron’s findings at a public City Council committee meeting on Monday, August 17 at 6 p.m.

For more on Lakewood Hospital, click here.

Since receiving the letter of intent from the LHA and Cleveland Clinic with respect to a proposed plan for Lakewood Hospital and future healthcare delivery in Lakewood, City Council and administration of the city have been working diligently, in good faith and with all deliberate speed, to understand and assess the proposed plan. These efforts have included over 30 meetings by City Council with representatives of LHA, the Cleveland Clinic, LHA’s consultant Subsidium, the Lakewood Hospital Foundation, human service organizations and other community organizations and members of the public, as well as analysis by outside counsel of the existing definitive agreement and lease relating to Lakewood Hospital.

While it continues to conduct due diligence, City Council has not introduced, considered or adopted any legislation that would carry the terms of this proposal or any proposal regarding the future of Lakewood Hospital into effect.

Huron is a market leader in providing integrated performance improvements solutions and financial advisory services to hospitals and other healthcare organizations. Additional information on Huron is available at huronconsultinggroup.com. Additional information on the members of the Huron team performing the Lakewood Hospital analysis is available in the final report.