Expenses Increase at Community Hospital of San Bernardino; Budget Deficit Expected

Expenses at Community Hospital of San Bernardino are expected to increase to $140.8 million this year from about $88 million in 1999, as revenue and state and federal reimbursement decreases, the Riverside Press-Enterprise reports. Hospital CEO Bruce Satzger said he anticipates a $13 million budget deficit this year, compared with a profit of $6 million in 1999 (Gaudette, Riverside Press-Enterprise, 5/20). Hospital spokesperson Tobey Robertson said workers' compensation costs, medical malpractice insurance and increased charity care contribute to about $1 million in losses per month. Robertson said that there are no plans to close the hospital and added that Catholic Healthcare West, the hospital's operator, is not planning to sell the facility. In March, the hospital announced that it would lay off 147 employees as part of an effort to reduce costs. No other layoffs are planned. Instead, hospital officials are trying to increase revenue by renegotiating its Medi-Cal contract and converting a convalescent ward into a 24-bed neurological long-term care unit for children, the Press-Enterprise reports (Beeman, Riverside Press-Enterprise, 5/19).