When federal investigators visited Tampa (FL) General Hospital to look into how two patients were able to kill themselves within three days, they found other problems. At least five patients had to sleep in the hallway of the psychiatric unit so they all could be watched by one staffer, regulators said. Doing so failed in "providing for privacy and dignity," regulators for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said in a report. The report threatens to stop Medicare funding in September unless problems are fixed.
Franklin, TN-based Healthways Inc.'s stock fell nearly 22% after the company said it expects to earn much less in its fiscal first quarter than Wall Street analysts had forecast. The outlook comes as some outsiders warn that Healthways' services may be considered too high-priced in an era of rising medical costs in which corporate executives scrutinize expenses more closely and cut discretionary spending. Healthways provides medical support and health advice to members of health insurance plans who are at risk from chronic diseases such as diabetes.
Despite being plagued by a variety of ailments in recent years, healthcare stocks are emerging as one of the stock market's few bright spots. Over the past three months, healthcare companies in the Standard & Poor's 500 are up 4.4% on average, compared with a drop of 7.9% for the overall index. The strength in healthcare follows several years of underperformance.
The Chicago 2016 bid team is turning to the city's hospitals for help in attracting the Olympic Games. The sheer number of people at any summer Olympics requires a large pool of medical personnel, perhaps thousands. So Chicago's hospitals are being asked to submit proposals to fill this need of volunteers by becoming official medical-care providers if the city were to host the 2016 Summer Games. This request has brought some big names to the table, including Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Rush University Medical Center, and University of Chicago Medical Center. These and other hospitals are considering whether to submit a joint proposal or go at it alone, according to hospital sources.
A judge is considering the legality of a $200 million fund transfer made to help balance the Wisconsin budget. The Wisconsin Medical Society sued after the Legislature approved the transfer, arguing that taking money out of the fund used to pay medical malpractice claims was an illegal raid that puts patients and doctors at risk. The transfer is similar to others made over the years to help balance the state budget, state attorneys said. But the Medical Society said the large transfer makes the fund unstable and will result in an increase in charges to doctors and hospitals.
Some 650 of the 8,000 Iraqi physicians who fled the country since 2003 due to violence have returned to their jobs in the past two months, a Health Ministry official announced. The doctors have gone back to hospitals across Iraq due to the improved security, said Health Ministry Inspector General Adel Muhsin. Iraq's medical system is understaffed because of workers fleeing, and several weeks ago the government appealed to doctors to come home.