California health officials have fined 13 hospitals for placing patients at risk of serious injury or death. The fines marked the third time the California Department of Public Health has disciplined hospitals since a 2007 state law went into effect that grants the agency the authority to fine facilities for placing patients in serious jeopardy. Each fine was $25,000, and experts expect the high-profile fines to pressure hospitals to improve patient safety.
A Texas commission is urging the state Legislature to protect consumers by placing all PPOs under state regulation for the first time. The staff of the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission said the lack of state authority over PPOs is "outdated," and may result in harm to a large number of consumers if the situation remains unchanged. Statistics show that four out of five insured Texans now receive healthcare through preferred provider organizations.
Houston-based healthcare firm Atlantic Health Care has acquired a majority stake in Renaissance Healthcare Systems, putting a Grand Prairie, TX, hospital back on target for a 2009 opening. Atlantic will pay off Renaissance's current debt, pay back $6.5 million in liens to subcontractors and then start construction at the Grand Prairie facility, which is 80% complete. Construction at the hospital stopped in late 2007, and records showed that several dozen liens were filed this year against Renaissance for nonpayment.
Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare Corp. has announced the opening of the Sierra Providence East Medical Center in El Paso, TX. The $143.9 million hospital will employ 300 people, with plans to add 200 more in the future.
Philadelphia-based insurer CIGNA has launched an interactive Web site to allow customers to shop for the best doctors, medications and hospitals near their homes. The site offers interactive step-by-step tools that provide information such as rankings of doctors and hospitals by cost and quality measures, the location of nearby pharmacies with the lowest prices, and help with medical diagnosis.
New York-based Lindsay Goldberg has invested $75 million in Ambulatory Services of America, Inc. to help close several acquisitions and fuel the Brentwood, TN-based medical company's further expansion. Ambulatory Services of America provides alternate-site healthcare services in partnership with physicians, and operates dialysis and cancer treatment centers in several states.