Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Medical Students Fill Record Number Of Residencies On Match Day
Modern Healthcare: Match Day 2024: Record Number Of Residency Positions Filled
Medical students filled a record number of residency positions this year as some states and individual health systems funded an increased number of graduate medical education slots amid federal caps. Hospitals and medical centers offered 41,503 residency positions in 2024, a 3% increase from last year, according to Match Day results released Friday by the National Resident Matching Program. (Devereaux, 3/15)
The Washington Post: As America Ages, There Are Few Doctors Who Specialize In Seniors’ Care
Pat Early, 66, has lived with the autoimmune disease Sjogren’s syndrome since her 30s. She must rely on a stable of specialists — a rheumatologist, gastroenterologist, endocrinologist, ophthalmologist and the like — to manage the fatigue, muscle pain and other complications of the disease, all helmed by her longtime primary-care doctor. When that doctor started cutting back his staff, she began searching for someone new and stumbled across a medical practice of geriatricians — doctors who specialize in patients over age 65. Early didn’t consider herself old, so “it never even crossed my mind that that’s something I should be looking at,” she said. But she’s grateful for the switch. (Stern, 3/17)
In hospital news —
The Mercury News: Five Years After Facing Closure, Valley Health Center Opens In Morgan Hill
Santa Clara County Valley Healthcare is reopening a newly revamped health care center in the historically underserved South County after the site faced closure and years of reduced capacity. Valley Healthcare Center Morgan Hill, formally known as De Paul Health Center, will begin operating on Monday and is set to expand primary care and urgent care services for the region. (Melecio-Zambrano, 3/15)
CBS News: Allegheny Health Network Raises Hourly Minimum Wage To $18
Allegheny Health Network is boosting its minimum hourly starting wage to $18, the company announced on Friday. AHN says the increase will start at the end of March, affecting about 1,700 employees who are already at or near the current minimum hourly wage of $16 an hour. The company says the increase will have the greatest impact on those working in entry-level positions that are essential to the patient experience like environmental services, dietary services and patient care technicians. (Bartos, 3/15)
Asheville Watchdog: Feds Cite Mission Hospital For Another Violation
Asheville’s Mission Hospital has violated the Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act (EMTALA), the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services told the hospital’s CEO on Thursday, again threatening to withdraw the system’s federal funding, according to a letter obtained by Asheville Watchdog. EMTALA ensures public access to emergency services regardless of ability to pay. It requires Medicare-participating hospitals to provide a medical screening when a request is made for examination or treatment for an emergency condition, according to CMS. (Jones, 3/16)
CNN: Why Your Doctor’s Office Is Spamming You With Appointment Reminders
Going to see the doctor soon? Prepare to be hounded with appointment reminders by phone. By text. By robocall. By email. And in your online “patient portal.” Doctors and dentist offices for years left a courtesy voicemail on patients’ home answering machines giving them a heads-up about their appointment. But now, medical practices are flooding patients with reminders of upcoming appointments — and warnings of cancellation penalties. (Meyersohn, 3/16)
