After arguing that its very survival was at stake, officials at Trinity Medical Center in Birmingham, Ala., got the greenlight from the state to relocate operations to another hospital building.

The state Certification of Need Review Board unanimously voted to grant the hospital the go-ahead after two hours of testimony and argument, the Birmingham News reports.

Trinity Medical Center officials argued that it would be forced to close in a few years if the state didn't approve its request to move, the Birmingham News reports. Trinity's attorney Carey McRae noted that inpatient admissions at the current hospital had dropped one third from 21,000 to 14,000 between 2001 and 2008. "Trinity Medical Center is dying a slow death," he said.

Barring appeal, the hospital's certificate of need approval will be finalized in 45 days, according to a Trinity spokesperson. Construction is slated to begin later this year. The new hospital could be finished in 24 months.

The partially completed building that Trinity proposes to relocate to has sat vacant for nearly a decade. HealthSouth (NYSE: HLS) invested $225 million in the U.S. 280 building and planned to open a state-of-the-art hospital, but never completed it, according to the Shelby County Reporter. 

Trinity plans to invest another $280 million to finish construction on the facility. Community support for the relocation was strong. More than eight in 10 who responded to a Birmingham News poll said they favored Trinity's move.

To learn more:
- read the Trinity Medical Center press release
- see the Birmingham News articles here and here
- read the Shelby County Reporter article

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