St. Charles Parish Hospital District No. 1, LA GO Parity Debt Rating Lowered To 'B' From 'A' On Criteria Application

CHICAGO (S&P Global Ratings) Oct. 16, 2018--S&P Global Ratings lowered its long-term rating to 'B' from 'A' on St. Charles Parish Hospital District No. 1, La.'s previously-issued general obligation (GO) parity debt. The outlook is stable. The rating action reflects the application of our "U.S. And Canadian Not-For-Profit Acute Care Health Care Organizations" criteria published March 19, 2018 on RatingsDirect. Previously, we rated St. Charles' debt under our GO debt criteria. We view the district's underlying credit quality as stable. "The 'B' rating reflects our view of St. Charles' extremely thin balance sheet, sizable debt levels, ongoing small hospital risks, and significant competition in the broader market," said S&P Global Ratings credit analyst Suzie Desai. The stable outlook reflects our

...CHICAGO (S&P Global Ratings) Oct. 16, 2018--S&P Global Ratings lowered its long-term rating to 'B' from 'A' on St. Charles Parish Hospital District No. 1, La.'s previously-issued general obligation (GO) parity debt. The outlook is stable. The rating action reflects the application of our "U.S. And Canadian Not-For-Profit Acute Care Health Care Organizations" criteria published March 19, 2018 on RatingsDirect. Previously, we rated St. Charles' debt under our GO debt criteria. We view the district's underlying credit quality as stable. "The 'B' rating reflects our view of St. Charles' extremely thin balance sheet, sizable debt levels, ongoing small hospital risks, and significant competition in the broader market," said S&P Global Ratings credit analyst Suzie Desai. The stable outlook reflects our view of St. Charles' management agreement with Ochsner, including the improved operating performance and ability to manage cash flow through discretionary Medicaid payments to the state that can...

Ratings Action