According to the Times Picayune, a long awaited business plan for a new LSU/Tulane Teaching Hospital in New Orleans was released yesterday. The plan calls for a 484 bed hospital at a cost of $1.2 billion to be built in New Orleans to replace Charity Hospital. This is a part of a proposal from last summer, in which the VA and new LSU/Tulane Teaching Hospital would comprise a new facility in New Orleans.
Senator David Vitter (R-La), that paragon of compassionate conservatism, stated that "Never in my wildest fears would I have predicted this -- no commitment to redesign yet and a proposed very big charity that costs 12 times more than any previous estimate. Unbelievable."
However, there were two previous estimates, one by LSU officials in the summer of 2006 that cited a cost of $650 million for a 350 bed hospital, as well as a preliminary business plan released in December 2006 that called for a 427 bed hospital with a price tag of $950 million.
Hmmm ... perhaps the Senator needs to go back to elementary school for remedial math ... $650 million + $650 million = $1.3 billion. To make it easy for the good Senator ...
$650,000,000
+ $650,000,000 $1,300,000,000
$1.3 billion is more than $1.2 billion. That means this proposal is LESS than TWO times more, Senator. Go back to elementary school, and take remedial math. Or hire a staffer that knows how to add and subtract, so you don't look like a fool.
