CON Opposition in the South

David Rosenfeld at Medical News, Inc reports on the controversy regarding Certificate of Need laws:

Florida Governor Charlie Crist is mounting an aggressive campaign this year against the state’s certification process for new hospitals, commonly known as Certificate of Need (CON). And he’s not alone.
CON laws face a battery of opposition in states across the South. Yet few believe that the laws will change.
Although most CON laws are slightly different, each represents the efforts of individual states to limit growth and ensure that healthcare facilities are constructed only where they’re needed.

Existing hospitals, in an attempt to decrease competition, tend to support these laws.