Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Massachusetts' Largest Health Care System To Spend Up To $90M In Buy-Outs For Hospital Workers
Boston Globe: Brigham And Women’s Buyouts Will Cost As Much As $90M
Partners HealthCare expects to spend up to $90 million on severance packages for employees at one of its biggest hospitals, Boston’s Brigham and Women’s. Partners, the state’s largest health care system, said Friday that it has already booked $19 million of those costs. (Dayal McCluskey, 8/18)
Chicago Tribune: Centegra's Woodstock Hospital To Stop Admitting Most Overnight Patients
Centegra Hospital-Woodstock has stopped admitting most overnight patients as part of a slew of changes meant to save cash and become more efficient. The hospital discontinued medical-surgical and intensive care services Aug. 12, and this week it filed applications with the state's Health Facilities and Services Review Board to make those changes permanent. Previously, it had 60 medical-surgical beds and 12 intensive care beds. It will still provide emergency room care and mental health crisis stabilization as well as inpatient behavioral health services and outpatient imaging and lab services. (Schencker, 8/18)
Georgia Health News: DeKalb Medical Says Several Health Systems Open To A Partnership
Three months after sending out invitations for potential partnerships, DeKalb Medical Center says it has received bids from several suitors. ... The partnership proposals have occurred amid the continued consolidation of hospital systems, both here and nationally. This week, two big metro Atlanta players — Gwinnett Health System and Northside Hospital — announced they had completed the details of their long-awaited merger agreement and submitted it to the state attorney general for approval. And rural Stephens County Hospital in Toccoa said it, too, is looking for a hospital partner. (Miller, 8/20)
St. Louis Public Radio: St. Louis-Area Hospitals Expect Influx Of Patients To Coincide With Eclipse
Saint Louis University Hospital's emergency services director, Helen Sandkuhl, has spent the last couple of weeks reviewing emergency plans, checking equipment and preparing a crisis communications center in a hospital conference room. Visitors are descending on the St. Louis region to view the total solar eclipse on Monday, so Sandkuhl and other emergency room officials expect to be busier than usual. (Bouscaren, 8/20)
Orlando Sentinel: Florida Hospital To Start Pediatric Liver Transplant Program
Florida Hospital received the state’s approval Friday to start performing pediatric liver transplants at its children’s hospital, becoming the first program of its kind in Orlando and the second in Florida. ... Up to now, the procedure has been performed only at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami. (Miller, 8/18)
