Plans are underway to open a hospital in Florence that will serve prisoners and the public.

The hospital would save the state the cost of transporting sick inmates elsewhere for medical treatment, said Gary Faulkner, president of the Florence Chamber of Commerce.

It also would help eliminate the need for residents of Florence to drive 35 miles to Casa Grande for major medical services.

Florence, which has about 5,800 residents, lost its hospital in 1999 when the 86-bed Central Arizona Medical Center closed after years of heavy losses.

The new hospital would have one entrance for the public and another secured one for inmates incarcerated in and near Florence.

It’s going to be a prototype, Mr. Faulkner said. “There’s not anything else like it.”

Daedalus Ltd. of Boise, Idaho, is financing the project, he said.

It’s not yet clear how many beds the hospital will be able to accommodate.

The hospital, which could open as early as 2005, will be planned to grow as needed.

The complex will cost about $40 million, said Mike McDonough, a construction manager with the builder. —