The rating on Rhode Island Health&Educational Facilities Building Corp.'s bonds, issued for South County Hospital (SCH), reflects: * SCH's dominant market and competitive position due to low costs and solid outpatient care business, * Improving operating performance, and * Strong balance sheet backed by the guarantee of the hospital's foundation. These strengths are offset by the hospital's small size of only 100 beds. SCH is a 100-bed acute care facility located in the Wakefield area of South Kingstown, 30 miles south of Providence and 20 miles away from the nearest hospitals. The hospital's market share in its primary market remains dominant at approximately 85%, up from 68% in 1990. Most of the remaining market share is absorbed by
