Elected leaders in Portland, OR, have unanimously pledged to become one of the first cities in the country to offer health insurance. The City Council voted 5-0 for a resolution that convenes a working group to figure out how to provide coverage for preschoolers and children in public schools—Portland has an estimated 12,000 children without health insurance. But because backers haven't begun to work out the details, it's unclear how much the city would have to spend on the insurance or how it would pay for the plan.
When problems forced the closure of Martin Luther King Jr.-Harbor Hospital, the Los Angeles County government leaders blamed their own employees. When the hospital ended inpatient and emergency operations a year ago, county supervisors promised to "wipe the slate clean" of problem employees. But a review of personnel data and disciplinary appeals shows that at least 22 employees with significant disciplinary histories at King either still work at what remains of the facility, or have been reassigned to other county hospitals. It is not known exactly how many problem employees from King are on the job.
Atlanta-based Grady Memorial Hospital is expected to announce a new CEO to run the troubled medical center in August, and will bring the new leader on board in September, officials said. Pete Correll, head of the hospital board of directors, acknowledged that the hospital missed its self-imposed deadline to name a new chief officer in June and said the search has proved more difficult than expected. Some candidates were deflected by the Georgia law requiring that the names of finalists for such public positions be made public, and others did not want current employers to know they were looking only to be passed over, he said.
Indiana is allowing uninsured state residents to buy into its Healthy Indiana Plan, which was previously available only to low-income residents. The buy-in is available to people ages 19-64 who have been without insurance for at least six months and who are not offered employer-based coverage. The Healthy Indiana Plan includes several benefits, including preventative health services such as mammograms, prostate exams and flu shots, and a health savings account. But people who do not meet low-income requirements will have to pay a monthly rate to buy into the plan, which for them will not be subsidized by the state or federal government.
The Illinois Health Facilities Planning Board has approved St. Francis Hospital & Health Center's transfer of ownership application to MSMC Investors. MSMC is buying the Catholic hospital in south suburban Blue Island, IL, and was the only company to step forward to purchase St. Francis after the hospital announced it would close in April amid rising numbers of uninsured patients who cannot pay their medical bills and other issues. SSM Health Care, St. Francis' parent, and MSMC said in a joint statement that they hope to finalize the transaction July 30.
New York City's Health and Hospitals Corporation has agreed to increase the monitoring of patients at a public psychiatric ward in Brooklyn. The agreement came after a videotape surfaced showing a patient collapsing onto a floor at Kings County Hospital Center after waiting nearly 24 hours to be seen, and lying there for about an hour before somebody came to her aid. The agency agreed to the stepped-up monitoring to settle a lawsuit filed by the New York Civil Liberties Union and others. The lawsuit accuses the public hospital of keeping psychiatric patients in filthy conditions, systematically neglecting them, and drugging them into submission.