Nine bidders have expressed interest in taking over the physician services in Jackson Health System's emergency rooms. The main contract part of the contract is for services to adults at Jackson Memorial Hospital. The highest bid for the main contract came from the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, which said it would provide adult services for $55.5 million for three years. The lowest bid came from Paragon Health, which said it could supply physician services for three years for $20.4 million. All entities except UM and Oracle submitted separate bids for ER services for adults and children at Jackson Memorial, Jackson South and Jackson North. UM submitted bids only for services at Jackson Memorial. Oracle offered proposals only for Jackson South.
A group of 12 physicians at Boca Raton Regional Hospital (BRRH) signed a collaborative care agreement with Aetna’s Medicare Advantage that would reward them with financial incentives to improve patient care. Similar collaborative agreements are being established around the country to link medical provider performance to pay. This is one of 62 such deals Aetna has made nationwide. Aetna and the doctors at nonprofit BRRH will share data with the goal of improving patient outcomes and efficiency of treatment. They will use the ActiveHealth CareEngine System to monitor patient information.
Sixty-one percent of independent physicians are seeking employment, and the majority of those doctors say that the government requirement for them to adopt and show meaningful use of an electronic health record (EHR) is one reason, a new Accenture report finds. By the end of next year, Accenture forecasts, only 36% of physicians will be self-employed. The biggest reason for doctors to seek employment, the Accenture survey shows, is the cost of doing business as an independent practitioner. Eighty-seven percent of respondents who were looking for a job cited that challenge, and 61% checked off "the prevalence of managed care."
The federal healthcare overhaul aims to drastically reduce the number of Americans who don't have insurance. As Minnesota officials gear up to promote the importance of health insurance, market research indicates even subsidized health plans will be a tough sell with some people. Market research indicates many uninsured people are deeply skeptical of health plans, public and private. Some have been dumped out of government programs because of changes in their finances. Others have been denied coverage due to pre-existing health conditions. And some just found coverage too expensive or not worth the cost
Harris Regional Hospital in Sylva, Swain County Hospital in Bryson City and Haywood Regional Medical Center in Clyde, North Carolina, have laid off more than 80 employees in total. "Despite adjustments that have been made over the past several months, inpatient volumes have not rebounded as we had expected and our expenses have continued to exceed revenues, a trend that is unsustainable," said Steve Heatherly, president and CEO of WestCare hospitals which include the Harris and Swain hospitals. MedWest says the reductions will save about $7 million annually.
One patient died and three staff members suffered slight injuries after a fire at a specialty hospital inside Durham Regional Hospital early Tuesday morning. The one person who died during the fire was a patient at the Select Specialty Hospital that rents space inside Durham Regional Hospital. The 30-bed unit is a long-term care facility. "Select Specialty Hospitals is a separately operated facility on the sixth floor," said Katie Galbraith with Durham Regional Hospital. "That's where it happened, and the fire was contained to one room."