Moody's: Obama healthcare plan boon for hospitals

President-elect Barack Obama's plan to extend healthcare to uninsured Americans will provide a boon to hospitals and medical centers, according to Moody's Investors Service. "Moody's estimates that the annual cost of the plan could be on the order of $100 billion to $200 billion, inclusive of participant contributions, on top of current annual government spending of about $800 billion," the rating agency said in a report. "The expected spending could positively affect the top-line growth of many healthcare providers."