Hospital Closures May Accelerate With 8% At Risk, Leaving More Patients Farther From Care
Currently 30 hospitals a year are shutting down across the U.S., Bloomberg reports. That number could increase, according to a Morgan Stanley analysis, with facilities in rural areas particularly at risk. More hospital news comes out of San Jose and Ventura.
Bloomberg:
U.S. Hospitals Shut At 30-A-Year Pace, With No End In Sight
Industry M&A may be no savior as the pace of hospital closures, particularly in hard-to-reach rural areas, seems poised to accelerate. Hospitals have been closing at a rate of about 30 a year, according to the American Hospital Association, and patients living far from major cities may be left with even fewer hospital choices as insurers push them toward online providers like Teladoc Inc. and clinics such as CVS Health Corp’s MinuteClinic. (Flanagan, 8/21)
The Mercury News:
San Jose Hospital Probing Racially Charged Social Media Post
Regional Medical Center is investigating a racially charged social media post that appears to have been written by its interim emergency department manager, a hospital spokeswoman said Tuesday. In the post, the author — identified as “Beth Laurine” — expresses disgust for “immigrants from other countries” who kneel when “The Star-Spangled Banner” is played. (Green, 8/21)
Ventura County Star:
Community Memorial Gains Distinction For Stroke Care
Community Memorial Health System has again been awarded the American Heart/American Stroke Association’s “Gold Plus Achievement Award” as well as the association’s “Target Stroke Honor Roll Elite Plus Achievement Award” highlighting dedication to the highest standards in stroke care. Attending a recent awards presentation ceremony at Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura were members of health system administration, the CMHS Stroke Champions, members of the CMHS Stroke Multidisciplinary Team, and American Heart/American Stroke Association Regional Director Bliss Rayo-Taranto. (8/21)
And in national hospital and insurance pricing news —
The Wall Street Journal:
What Does Knee Surgery Cost? Few Know, And That’s A Problem
For nearly a decade, Gundersen Health System’s hospital in La Crosse, Wis., boosted the price of knee-replacement surgery an average of 3% a year. By 2016, the average list price was more than $50,000, including the surgeon and anesthesiologist. Yet even as administrators raised the price, they had no real idea what it cost to perform the surgery—the most common for hospitals in the U.S. outside of those related to childbirth. ... Prompted by rumblings from Medicare and private insurers over potential changes to payments, Gundersen decided to nail down the numbers. ... The actual cost? $10,550 at most, including the physicians. The list price was five times that amount. (Evans, 8/21)
Bloomberg:
Priced Out Of Health Insurance, Americans Rig Their Own Safety Nets
The number of people joining so-called health-care sharing ministries—religion-based cost-sharing plans—rose 74 percent from 2014 to 2016, according to the latest Internal Revenue Service data. An alliance for the groups said that more than 1 million people now participate in such programs. Similarly, primary-care clinics like the one Julie Gunther started in 2014 have grown to almost 900 from just a handful in the early 2000s, according to the Direct Primary Care Coalition, a trade group for the clinics. (Tozzi, 8/22)