St. Bernard Parish may create new hospital board

Addressing an ethics dispute involving a public board overseeing construction of a hospital in St. Bernard Parish in Louisiana, a divided Parish Council has taken the first step toward replacing the board with a new one. The council voted 4-2 to introduce an ordinance to create a new five-member board charged with building a hospital to replace the one destroyed during Hurricane Katrina. The ordinance is set for a final vote in October, but it could be moot if parish officials negotiate an agreement with two doctors serving on the current board to resign amid conflict-of-interest concerns.