Two Orlando hospitals win OK for transplants

Orlando is poised to become the only city in Florida with competing heart-transplant programs, after the state gave approval to the area's largest hospital chains to start the programs at their main facilities. Both Orlando Health and Florida Hospital lauded the surprise move by the Agency for Health Care Administration, which received the transplant applications in June. Florida Hospital expects to do a dozen of the surgeries in its first year, and expand to 18 transplants by its second. Orlando Health plans to do six heart transplants initially, then double to 12 procedures by its second year in operation.