The selection of a private company to lease Jefferson Parish's two public hospitals is considered one of the most significant decisions that the Parish Council has ever faced. But for Councilman-at-Large Elton Lagasse, the implications aren't limited to which organization offers the best medical care or most money. The choice of Ochsner Health System, Louisiana Children's Medical Center or...
The selection of a private company to lease Jefferson Parish's two public hospitals is considered one of the most significant decisions that the Parish Council has ever faced. But for Councilman-at-Large Elton Lagasse, the implications aren't limited to which organization offers the best medical care or most money.
The choice of Ochsner Health System, Louisiana Children's Medical Center or the HCA conglomerate is important to Lagasse's family, even if he leaves personal considerations aside when voting. That's because Lagasse's son, Thomas Lagasse, works as the distribution manager for Touro Infirmary, which is run by Children's. And Thomas Lagasse's wife, Colette, holds a similar position at Ochsner.
Lagasse has publicly endorsed Children's for the lease, but he said Wednesday that his son's job did not figure into the decision. That his son and daughter-in-law work for competing suitors neutralizes any potential conflict, Lagasse said.
"I will vote for Children's. I don't care who works there," Lagasse said. "This is getting ridiculous."
Lagasse isn't the only council member with a family stake in the decision to lease out East Jefferson General Hospital and West Jefferson Medical Center. Councilman Mark Spears Jr.'s wife, Dr. Rachel Spears, works at West Jefferson.
The state Ethics Board last month cleared Mark Spears to participate in the lease vote. The board concluded that Spears does not hold an "any interest in any entity that intends to bid on the project" and that Spears will not participate in any discussions with the lease winner about individual physicians.
State law forbids public servants to participate in transactions in which immediate family members hold a "substantial economic interest," defined as an interest that is "of greater benefit to the public servant or other person than a general class or group of persons," according to the board's letter to Spears.
Lagasse and Councilman-at-Large Chris Roberts announced their support for Children's earlier this month, shortly after an umbrella board for the two Jefferson hospitals failed to agree on a recommendation. The West Jefferson board supports Children's, and the East Jefferson board has endorsed HCA.
In the weeks before announcing their preference, Lagasse and Roberts said they did not want to vote on picking a lessee without a recommendation. Once the hospital boards deadlocked, however, attention turned to Kaufman Hall, the consulting firm that has helped recruit and vet suitors over the past 1-1/2 years. The East Jefferson board sought Kaufman Hall's recommendation, but the firm declined because the West Jefferson board had not joined in asking.
Councilman Ben Zahn has demanded the firm provide a recommendation, but Roberts has raised concerns about the firm's impartiality. Roberts, the council chairman, has indefinitely delayed a vote until all council members are prepared to do so.