Pittsburgh medical center rejects $150 million plan

Dan Kulin

Thursday, July 7, 2005 | 11:22 a.m.

The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center would not contribute $150 million toward the construction of a possible $400 million Las Vegas academic medical center, a Pittsburgh center spokeswoman said this morning.

"We did not agree to putting any money up front for building a hospital. We reject that idea," Pittsburgh center spokeswoman Jane Duffield said.

University System Chancellor Jim Rogers said last week in a memo to university regents that after his meetings with Pittsburgh center officials a few days earlier, the plan for a Las Vegas center called for $150 million from the Pittsburgh center plus $250 million from local sources.

Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman, a chief supporter of bringing an academic medical center to city-owned 61 acres in downtown, has said he hopes the state will foot the local bill for what he has described as a teaching hospital that may specialize in advanced medicine, such as transplants.

However, Rogers said last week that the Nevada and Pittsburgh center officials had only formally agreed to hire a consultant and/or architect to figure out how much land would be needed for a Las Vegas academic medical center. That study would show whether the center would fit on city-owned 61 acres in downtown that is also slated to be home to a performing arts center, possibly a new City Hall, and residential and office high-rises.

Attempts to reach Rogers this morning were unsuccessful, and a secretary at his office said Rogers was out of town. He is on a vacation cruise.

Dr. Jim Lenhart, vice dean of the University of Nevada School of Medicine, said the idea to share the cost of constructing a Las Vegas center was "a suggestion and never fully discussed" by the Pittsburgh and Nevada officials. He added that Duffield's comments don't mean an end to discussions between the two groups.

"This necessitates us getting back into the room and negotiating," Lenhart said. "This is not going to be cheap. We'll continue the dialogue."

Lenhart said it is unclear what impact the Pittsburgh officials' stance could have on the project -- whether it means the project would be smaller, or money would be needed from elsewhere.

Duffield said the Pittsburgh center was prepared to cover any operating costs at a Las Vegas center, and in return would keep any profits from a Las Vegas center.

That also conflicts with Rogers' memo, which said the costs of running a Las Vegas center and any profits from the center would be split 50-50 by the Nevada university system and Pittsburgh center.

Duffield also said that the Pittsburgh center officials would have the power to appoint and remove members from a board that would oversee the Las Vegas center. That too seems to go against past comments from local officials who have said that while Pittsburgh would be in charge of day-to-day operations, the Pittsburgh center would have no more control over the board than local leaders.

"I thought governance was supposed to be shared," Lenhart said.

Lenhart said that in general Duffield's comments show there is still a lot of discussion that needs to take place between the Nevada and Pittsburgh officials, a point Duffield echoed.

"Nothing is cast in stone," Duffield said. "This is a work in progress."