BATON ROUGE, La.
Louisiana State University is trying to convince the head of the state health department to run its medical school and hospitals, including the state charity hospital system.
Dr. Fred Cerise, secretary of health and hospitals, confirmed Wednesday that LSU administrators have been talking to him about the position of LSU System vice president for health affairs and medical education, which the board of supervisors created in March.
“It’s true they have spoken with me but I don’t know what I’m going to do next,” Cerise said. “They have not offered me anything at this point.”
Cerise was appointed by Gov. Kathleen Blanco. Since she announced that she is not running for re-election, “I’ve had various people talk to me about opportunities,” Cerise said. For now, he said, he’s concentrating on the legislative session and initiatives for state healthcare restructuring that are getting under way.
LSU System President William Jenkins said they are talking to Cerise, a physician who has worked in the LSU hospital system as both an educator and administrator of LSU’s Earl K. Long Medical Center in Baton Rouge, but nothing is settled.
“He is an extraordinarily well-qualified person whom we would love to have on our team,” Jenkins said.
