The state has approved King’s Daughters Medical Center for an$11 million expansion of its services and renovations of existingfacilities.

The hospital received official notification that its certificateof need was approved earlier this month, said Phillip Grady, chiefexecutive officer of KDMC. The certificate is needed by hospitalsbefore they can expand to prevent them from over-saturating an areawith duplicate services.

“We’ve got state approval to proceed with the project. At thispoint, we don’t really have a time schedule of when we can startbuilding,” he said.

Hospital planners met with members of the Barlow, Eddy andJenkins architecture and planning team Wednesday to discuss draftsof electrical, plumbing and structural changes that will benecessary.

After the detailed drafts are complete, Grady said, they willneed to be approved by engineers with the state licensure board andWalter Temple, the Brookhaven building inspector, before thehospital can hire a contractor to begin the work.

Hospital plans approved by the state this month include creatinga new emergency department, intensive care unit and 10 new patientrooms as well as the renovation of existing patient rooms. Theproject will also add a sprinkler system for fire suppression tothe second and third floors, a new pharmacy and a heliport.

Prior to the Hurricane Katrina’s sweeping damage on the coast,the total project was estimated at $11 million. The hospital willfund $2 million of the project from funds saved for that purposeand has secured a $9 million revenue bond for additionalfunding.

However, because construction crews are overwhelmed currentlywith the rebuilding on the coast and the high demand for buildingmaterials, the cost of the actual construction for the project maybe more than originally projected, Grady said.

“There is some concern on construction costs because of therebuilding on the Gulf Coast,” Grady said. “We won’t know how thatthat might affect the project until it goes for bid.”

The hospital administrator has assured county supervisors thatthe expansion and improvements will not increase the cost ofhospital services.

In a meeting with supervisors this summer, Grady said “there arenormally annual increases based on inflation, but the expansionshould not affect costs. Most of the hospital’s income is capped”by state and federal programs like Medicare.