Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Doctors Allege HCA Hospitals Push Hospice Care To Lift Mortality Stats
NBC News: Doctors Say HCA Hospitals Push Patients Into Hospice Care To Improve Mortality Stats
This article is based on interviews with six nurses and 27 doctors who currently practice at 16 HCA hospitals in seven states or did so previously. All said their HCA hospitals pushed palliative and end-of-life care in pursuit of better performance metrics. Internal HCA hospital documents and texts between hospital staffers provided to NBC News support these health care professionals’ views. (Morgenson, 6/21)
Asheville Watchdog: North Carolina AG Threatens HCA With Litigation
The North Carolina Department of Justice today expressed “serious concerns” about HCA Healthcare’s compliance with the commitments it made as a condition of acquiring Asheville’s nonprofit Mission Hospital system in 2019. In a June 20 letter to Greg Lowe, CEO of HCA’s North Carolina Division, the North Carolina Attorney General’s office cited HCA’s sharp reduction in cancer services, consisting of just one physician “where it once had as many as 14.” (Jones and Lewis, 6/20)
On health care personnel —
Philadelphia Inquirer: Nursing Home Inspectors Are In Short Supply, According To Report
Sen. Bob Casey worries that many of the 1 million-plus people living in 15,000 nursing homes across the United States are in facilities that haven’t been inspected for a long time. About one in four nursing homes hadn’t been inspected in at least 16 months, as required by federal law. (Gutman, 6/22)
Philadelphia Inquirer: Nurses At Fox Chase Cancer Center Vote To Unionize
Nurses working at Fox Chase Cancer Center have voted to unionize, becoming the latest group of workers to form a collective-bargaining unit in recent months at the Northeast Philadelphia specialty hospital. Nearly 80% of the roughly 350 registered nurses who work at the Cottman Avenue center participated in Tuesday’s election, which was administered by the National Labor Relations Board. (Gutman and McLellan Ravitch, 6/21)
Los Angeles Times: L.A. Voters Could Clamp Down On Pay For Hospital Executives
Los Angeles voters will decide next spring whether to clamp down on pay for hospital executives, capping their total wages and other compensation at $450,000 annually, after the Los Angeles City Council voted Wednesday to put the proposed measure on the March 2024 ballot. The L.A. ballot measure is backed by a union representing healthcare workers, which argues pay for hospital executives has been excessive and out of line with the mission of providing affordable care. (Alpert Reyes, 6/21)
In other health care industry news —
New Hampshire Public Radio: NH Providers Report Harvard Pilgrim Payments Delays After Cyberattack
A recent cyberattack exposed the personal information of more than 2 million current and former Harvard Pilgrim Health Care customers, including in New Hampshire. But it has also interfered with the insurer's ability to pay out medical claims, and some local providers say that's creating significant strain. (Dario, 6/21)
NBC News: Harvard Human Remains Case Highlights Need For Body Donation Regulations, Experts Say
The prosecution of a former Harvard Medical School employee over an alleged human remains theft ring prompted experts to call for federal rules for a practice that they said is largely unregulated and has grown in recent years with the rise of for-profit “body brokers." (Stelloh, 6/22)
Stat: New Company Forms To Vet Health AI Models, Root Out Weaknesses
The market for artificial intelligence in health care is about as transparent as a brick wall. New tools achieve impressive results in published studies. But it is often difficult to compare them head to head with similar products, or tell whether they will work on different kinds of patients. (Ross, 6/21)
