Rural Texas Hospital Closing Its Doors After Only 14 Months
Citing financial concerns, Mid Coast Medical Center announced April 18 that Trinity County’s only hospital will wind down operations on Friday, The Texas Tribune reports. Mid Coast's closure serves as another example of the ongoing struggle of rural hospitals in Texas and nationwide.
The Texas Tribune:
East Texas Hospital To Close After Reopening 14 Months Ago
Trinity County’s only hospital, which opened just 14 months ago, will close this week as Texas continues to struggle to keep their rural hospitals afloat. (Huff, 4/23)
Chicago Tribune:
Prime Healthcare Suspending Pediatric Inpatient Care At Joliet Hospital
The new owner of St. Joseph Medical Center in Joliet plans to suspend inpatient pediatric care at the hospital less than two months after buying St. Joseph and seven other Illinois hospitals from Ascension — a move that’s drawing criticism from the hospital’s nurses union. (Schencker, 4/22)
In other health industry news —
Modern Healthcare:
UnitedHealth, Cigna CEOs Saw Compensation Grow Over 10% In 2024
Health insurance CEO pay rose in 2024 despite disappointing financial performances by several leading companies. Total compensation increased for the chief executives of UnitedHealth Group, Cigna, Centene and Molina Healthcare while it declined for the CEOs of CVS Health, Elevance Health and Humana, according to proxy statements the companies submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission. (Tepper, 4/22)
Modern Healthcare:
UNC Health CEO Dr. Wesley Burks To Step Down
Dr. Wesley Burks, UNC Health CEO and dean of the UNC School of Medicine, will step down Sept. 1. UNC has appointed Dr. Cristy Page, president of UNC Health Enterprises and chief academic officer, to be interim CEO and dean at that time. The health system will conduct a search for a permanent leader, according to a Tuesday news release. (Hudson, 4/22)
The Washington Post:
Virginia NICU Nurse Accused Of Hurting Babies Faces New Charges
New charges unveiled Tuesday against a nurse suspected of hurting infants in a Virginia hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit bring the number of children she is accused of abusing to five and extend the window of alleged mistreatment by two years. Erin Elizabeth Ann Strotman, 26, was arrested in January and charged in a single case after several infants suffered seemingly inexplicable fractures, prompting Henrico Doctors’ Hospital to abruptly shutter its NICU as police investigated. (Uber, 4/22)
Modern Healthcare:
Why OhioHealth, Bon Secours Are Investing In Smart Rooms
Health systems are betting big money on smart technology to streamline workflow and improve quality of care. Some systems, including Columbus, Ohio-based OhioHealth, have already incorporated full smart rooms at some facilities, areas equipped with intelligent technologies and ambient sensors to monitor patient activity and streamline care interactions. Others are investing millions of dollars to test and hone smart technology alongside third-party companies. (Hudson, 4/22)
On the high price of health care and prescription drugs —
Modern Healthcare:
CFPB To Retract Medical Debt Opinion
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau plans to retract an advisory opinion reminding debt collectors — including revenue cycle management firms often contracted by healthcare providers — that asking patients to pay for invalid or inaccurate medical bills is a violation of federal law. The advisory opinion, published in the Federal Register in October, was challenged by two debt collection companies the same week. In a district court filing this month, the collection companies and the agency jointly requested a pause in the proceedings, saying the CFPB intends to revoke the opinion. (DeSilva, 4/22)
Modern Healthcare:
Elevance Health's Care Coordination Improves Cost Predictions
Elevance Health is ramping up care coordination with new members in a move the company says helps it predict and prepare for medical cost trends that have dogged the health insurance sector. The for-profit Blue Cross and Blue Shield licensee is being more intentional about getting members to annual physical examinations sooner to identify needs and develop clinical strategies, the company announced while reporting first-quarter earnings results Tuesday. (Berryman, 4/22)
Stat:
Eli Lilly Opens New Legal Front In Battle Against Compounded GLP-1s
Amid ongoing battles over alternate supplies of blockbuster weight loss drugs, Eli Lilly filed new lawsuits against four telehealth firms and their affiliates, but is using a new line of attack — the drugmaker accused two of the companies of engaging in the corporate practice of medicine. (Silverman and Palmer, 4/23)
Bloomberg:
A Plan to Access Cheap Drugs Backfires, Leaving Patient With $250,000 Bill
Janelle Zeihen worried she’d have to file for bankruptcy after learning she owed $250,000 for her Crohn’s disease treatment. The Milwaukee nursing home worker thought her insurance was covering the infusions as part of a complex arrangement. Through a middleman, her benefit plan was trying to use a charity program to get her the medication for free. But only after months of treatment did Zeihen learn the maneuver backfired, leaving her on the hook for payments. (Tozzi, 4/22)
