The bankrupt Clinton County Hospital in Albany is discussing a sale to the parent firm of the Bowling Green Medical Center, which already owns several hospitals in south-central Kentucky.

The hospital’s directors voted this month to initiate discussions regarding a potential acquisition by Commonwealth Health Corporation . . . a not-for-profit parent company of the Medical Centers in Bowling Green, Scottsville and Franklin.

The hospital asked CHC to evaluate operations at Clinton County Hospital to determine the feasibility of Commonwealth Health Corporation assuming ownership and operation of Clinton County Hospital.

The hospital went into Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization more than a year ago, after being unable to repay a $15 million U.S. Department of Agriculture loan that it received to expand and modernize the hospital in the county of 10,000 on the Tennessee border south of Lake Cumberland. The project was completed in 2008. The hospital has blamed its problems on federal budget cuts and changes in Medicare and Medicaid, which provide more than 80 percent of the hospital’s revenue — particularly the managed-care companies that oversee Medicaid.

USDA recently forgave more than half the $18 million in accumulated debt, leaving $8,465,000 still owed.