St. Joseph's Hospital in Elmira had filed a petition in the state Supreme Court opposing the Berger recommendation that the two city hospitals be merged. The petition was denied last month.

This past week, both St. Joseph's and Arnot Ogden Medical Center were informed by the State Health Department that they have until March 1st to set an initial meeting to set up an affiliation between the two hospitals. A timeline has also been established for further steps in the merger progess.

Details in two local articles: WETM TV and Star-Gazette.