INDIANAPOLIS | The Indiana House voted 52-37 to place a temporary moratorium on new hospital construction while lawmakers study a number of issues related to struggling inner-city hospitals.

State Rep. Charlie Brown, D-Gary, said he wants legislators to take a step back and examine how hospitals that serve the uninsured are being affected by a rise in boutique or specialty care hospitals.

"The jury is still out on what impact they have on existing hospitals, particularly safety net hospitals," Brown said.

Specialty hospitals typically locate in suburban areas and focus on one area of medicine, such as heart procedures. Several Republican lawmakers said they don't think it's good to limit the growth of such facilities.

Brown said empty beds at Methodist Northlake in Gary and other inner-city hospitals cost taxpayers money.

Methodist Hospitals, which also operates the Southlake Campus in Merrillville, has been losing money in Gary because it doesn't have enough paying customers to help subsidize the cost of emergency care received by those who cannot pay. State and federal programs reimburse hospitals for only a portion of treating the uninsured.

The legislation, Senate Bill 193, would only halt hospital construction projects that were not under development by July 2006, and the moratorium would end in July 2008.

In the meantime, Brown wants a summer legislative committee to study the effects of specialty hospitals and whether such facilities should be allowed to use the term "hospital."

WHAT HAPPENED

The House narrowly approved a temporary moratorium on new hospital constructions, an effort intended to assist struggling urban hospitals. The measure could face revisions in the Senate.