Beaumont Hospitals has announced it has formed a nationally designated Children's Hospital, housed within its Royal Oak, MI, flagship facility. Beaumont Children's Hospital, as it is named, offers 36 pediatric subspecialty services, from endocrinology to urology, with more than 200 pediatricians.
Majority Leader Harry Reid indicated he's willing to move sweeping healthcare legislation through the Senate with a procedural maneuver that would block a GOP filibuster. The prospect of the controversial tactic has already ignited Republicans' ire, and key Senate Democratic chairmen have said they don't want to do it.
Chicago-based Rush University Medical Center has landed a $10 million gift from a Lake Forest foundation for an orthopedic joint replacement surgery center at its new hospital. The gift from The Grainger Foundation will help Rush's effort to redevelop the entire medical center complex on Chicago's West Side. That 10-year plan, which began in 2005 and will cost more than $900 million, includes the hospital under construction, a new parking garage, power plant, and emergency center.
Newton-Wellesley Hospital's bid to expand into Framingham, MA, has reignited an old debate: whether a nonprofit facility's services to the community outweigh the loss in property tax dollars. A Newton alderman is urging city officials to compare the value of the hospital's services with the taxes it would pay were it not exempt. Also, a Framingham planning official has told Newton-Wellesley to return with a "grown-up" offer of compensation if it wants to build an outpatient surgical facility in Framingham.
After months of meetings, a diverse collection of healthcare groups plans to issue recommendations March 30 for Congress as it works on legislation revamping the U.S. healthcare system. The proposal is consistent with plans outlined by President Obama and key congressional Democrats, said three people familiar with the report, who spoke on condition of anonymity. But the effort shows just how difficult it will be to overhaul the healthcare system, according to the Wall Street Journal Health Blog.
New York Gov. David A. Paterson and legislative leaders have reached tentative agreements on major cuts to healthcare spending. Lawmakers and healthcare industry officials said the leaders had agreed to freeze the so-called trend factor, the cost-of-living adjustment made to Medicaid reimbursements for nursing homes, hospitals, and home care providers. The freeze, which would be partly retroactive, would save the state about $300 million, according to industry officials.