Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
State Highlights: In Mass., Lahey Health And Beth Israel Revisit Merger; Hospital Fee Legislation Moving Fast Through Ga. Senate
WBUR: Beth Israel And Lahey Health Again Propose Merger
Lahey Health and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) are again proposing to merge. It's the fourth time in at least six years that word has surfaced of a deal between these two major systems. This time there’s a letter of intent and some details about what would be the largest hospital merger in Massachusetts since the mid-1990s. (Bebinger, 1/30)
Boston Globe: Beth Israel, Lahey Health Systems Agree To Pursue Merger
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Lahey Health said Monday that they plan to merge, moving forward after years of on-again, off-again talks with a deal they hope could better match the market clout of Partners HealthCare. The merger would be the largest among hospital systems in Massachusetts since the 1994 formation of Partners, the state’s largest health network. The combined organization would start out with eight hospitals, nearly 29,000 employees, and $4.5 billion in annual revenue. (Dayal McCluskey, 1/30)
Atlanta Journal Constitution: Hospital Fee (Or Is It A Tax?) Cruising Through Senate
State senators on Monday twice voted overwhelmingly in favor of continuing to make hospitals pay toward a fund that helps to generate nearly $1 billion for health care in Georgia. The legislation, Senate Bill 70, now heads to the Senate Rules Committee, the gateway to a Senate floor vote. (Hart, 1/30)
The Star Tribune: Flu Spike Prompts Hospital Restrictions
Allina Health will restrict visitor access at its hospitals starting Tuesday to reduce the risk of vulnerable patients catching the flu after an announcement by state health officials that the virus is active across much of Minnesota. The precautionary step occurs whenever the Minnesota Health Department declares that influenza is widespread across the state, said Allina spokesman Tim Burke. The department made that announcement late last week as part of its weekly tracking of the flu, which so far has been relatively mild in Minnesota. (Olson, 1/30)
Stateline: Bike Medics Bring Speedy Emergency Care To Patients
When the Los Angeles bike unit made its debut patrolling a triathlon in 2004, it had 20 cyclists. The team is now one of the largest in the U.S., with 120 cyclists on the roster and 60 bikes. ... Across the country, bike medics patrol airports, sports arenas, downtown entertainment areas and special events such as festivals, concerts and marathons. They are especially useful when roads are closed or congested, said Mike Touchstone, past president of the National EMS Management Association, a professional association of EMS managers. Medics on bikes can navigate crowded streets and sidewalks swiftly and go up and down stairs, escalators and elevators. (Bergal, 1/30)
The Philadelphia Inquirer: Surviving Heart Surgery: How Well Does Your Philly-Area Hospital Perform?
Heart-bypass and valve surgeries continue to be a good bet for patients in Pennsylvania, even as the widespread use of stents and statins means that hospitals perform far fewer procedures than they did years ago, a new state report found. Post-surgery death rates ranged from 1 percent to 4 percent at most facilities during a recent two-year period, the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council said Tuesday. The report also found that patients are increasingly unlikely to end up back in the hospital within 30 days of discharge – a quality-of-care indicator sure to please insurers seeking to rein in costs. (Avril, 1/31)
Kansas City Star: KC’S New Mental Illness Crisis Center Faces Down Struggles
So goes another morning at the new Kansas City Assessment and Triage Center at 12th and Prospect. The center is struggling to meet a pressing need: aiding people in severe mental distress whom police in the past too often delivered to the county jail or the nearest hospital emergency room — usually bad choices. Several forces, marshaling $3 million annually, united to create the crisis center to ease the strain on the community and the police. (Robertson, 1/30)
Denver Post: Why Summit County Has The Lowest Cancer Death Rates In The Country
A study published this month found that vertiginous Summit County has the lowest rate of death from any type of cancer in the United States. The high-country county — known for ski resorts such as Breckenridge and Keystone — also ranks no worse than third nationally in any of the study’s lists of counties with the lowest death rates for 10 specific kinds of cancer. But the good news for Colorado mountain-dwellers doesn’t end there. Pitkin, Eagle, Hinsdale, San Miguel and Grand counties all ranked in the top 10 nationally for lowest overall cancer death rate, while Routt, Mineral and Douglas — the only Front Range county mentioned in the study — also showed up in lists for the lowest death rates from specific types of cancer. (Ingold, 1/30)
The CT Mirror: A Legacy Of Debt: Connecticut Standing On Its Own Fiscal Cliff
The budget that Gov. Dannel P. Malloy will present to the legislature Feb. 8, in an attempt to close $3 billion in deficits over the next two years, is only a portent of a far greater, long-term challenge facing the the state. Simply, the bill is coming due in ever-increasing amounts for the 80-year failure of one of the richest states in the nation to adequately save for retirement benefits promised to teachers and state employees. Hobbled by debts accumulated by generations of governors and legislators, Connecticut for at least 15 years to come is likely to face a bleak and politically dangerous menu of options that could shape the state’s economy and quality of life. (Phaneuf, 1/30)
The CT Mirror: A Legacy Of Debt: Squeeze On State’s Priorities Only Getting Tighter
Much of the focus on state government’s surging retirement benefit costs has been on their likely impact on programs and taxes over the next two decades.And while that effect probably will be huge, those costs already have sapped significant funding from key priorities, particularly since the last recession ended seven years ago. ... Connecticut’s health care and social safety net, hailed by some but criticized by others as too generous, has sustained cuts. (Phaneuf, 1/31)
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Former Teen Inmate, Now Brain Damaged, Sues State
A former inmate at Wisconsin's teen prison filed a federal civil rights lawsuit Monday over a suicide attempt that left her severely brain damaged. The lawsuit by former Copper Lake School for Girls inmate Sydni Briggs and her mother alleges psychiatrists and prison officials failed to put protections in place even though Briggs had sent signals she was suicidal. She told a therapist she was thinking about suicide and twice scratched her arms so hard they bled, the suit says. (Marley, 1/30)
The Washington Post: Washington’s Worst Case Of Lead Poisoning In Decades Happened In A Home Sanctioned By Housing Officials
Another morning in the motel room, and there were more appointments to attend to. Today it wouldn’t be the blood tests, which weeks before had established Heavenz Luster’s lead levels as higher than anything seen in Washington in decades, or another injection to remove that lead — she had already had 18 — or another cognitive evaluation or visit to a nearby CVS pharmacy for more medication. Today it would be the behavioral therapists. Her parents, who silently watched the 2-year-old babble and stare at nothing, would finally know the severity of her brain damage. (McCoy, 1/30)
The Associated Press: Firm Seeks Dismissal Of Fed Watchdog’s Lead-Paint Lawsuit
A Chevy Chase financial firm and a Rockville lawyer are asking a judge to dismiss federal allegations that they bilked scores of lead-paint poisoning victims out of the full value of their damage settlements. Lawyers for Access Funding LLC and attorney Charles Smith filed the motions Monday in U.S. District Court in Baltimore. The company says the case involves issues of state law already being litigated in state court. (1/30)
The Associated Press: Minnesota’s Medical Marijuana Program Needs More Money
Minnesota’s medical marijuana program needs extra state funding to cover the costs of its patient database and inspections of drug manufacturers, just a few of the regulations that make it one of the most restrictive such laws in the country. It’s the latest reminder of the financial constraints on the program borne from the heavy restrictions on Minnesota’s 2014 law. (Potter, 1/30)
