Local Governments Forfeiting Control of Public Hospitals
Many local governments are opting to cede control of public hospitals because of ongoing financial strain and expectations for higher health care costs under the federal health reform law. Local governments currently own more than one-fifth of the approximately 5,000 hospitals in the country, but many public facilities are facing an increase in uninsured patients and a decline in reimbursement rates for Medicare and Medicaid.
- "Cash-Poor Governments Ditching Public Hospitals" (Sataline, Wall Street Journal, 8/29).