A Shelbyville doctor has asked the state to license more uses of his medical facilities on Colorado Boulevard, and the Bedford County-owned hospital opposes his application.

The application is from Dr. Domenic Canonico, an ear, nose and throat specialist with a room for surgical procedures as permitted by the Health Services and Development Agency, according to HSDA Executive Director Melanie Hill.

Several requests for an interview with Dr. Canonico have resulted in no appointment or contact with him.

Last month, Bedford County Medical Center Chief Executive Officer Bill Macri told trustees of the county-owned hospital that a Nashville attorney has been contacted to oppose Canonico's application when it's considered by the HSDA Board.

Such opposition is typical. For example, when a medical group requested a Certificate of Need for a new and highly computerized so-called "smart hospital" in Williamson County at Cool Springs, the county-owned Williamson Medical Center and Baptist, St. Thomas and Southern Hills hospitals opposed the application which was eventually denied.

Canonico's application is scheduled to be considered during a meeting of the HSDA scheduled for 8:30 a.m. June 22 in the BellSouth building in Nashville.

"His facility is classified as an Ambulatory Surgical Treatment Center," Hill told the Times-Gazette in a telephone interview last month. "He wants to go from a limit to ENT and plastic surgery to any kind of surgery.

"That way his facility could be used by any doctor," she said.

When asked about any opposition to Canonico's application, Hill said she was unaware of any such written record in the file of some 150 pages. "Most opposition is filed about 15 days before the hearing," she said.

The HSDA is the successor of the Tennessee Health Facilities Commission which in 2002 was "sun-setted" by state lawmakers by not renewing the law that created it. One of the reasons given for the existence of the THFC was to control demands on state funding for medical services. HSDA approval of certificates of need is required for hospitals, nursing homes and other medical facilities in Tennessee.

BCMC has a certificate of need for its 104-bed hospital and any business that buys it will have to acquire a certificate to own and operate the hospital.