Carolinas HealthCare System gets OK to build new hospital

After an initial denial, North Carolina officials have now approved Carolinas HealthCare System's request to build a new Lincoln County hospital. The $85 million facility will replace the current Carolinas Medical Center--Lincoln. Construction will likely begin in spring 2008, and the hospital could be open by late 2010. Regulators had initially denied the request for the new facility, saying Carolinas had overestimated population growth in Lincoln County and didn't demonstrate adequate need for the hospital's services.