Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen's administration has asked a federal judge to release the state from a decades-old court order in a healthcare lawsuit that could allow the state to drop some TennCare recipients and potentially save the state tens of millions of dollars. The move returns to the forefront a long-standing case over the state's ability to fairly determine whether a group of about 150,000 disabled TennCare recipients are entitled to the benefits.
Leaders of House Democrats say they are scheduling a vote on renewing a politically popular health insurance program for children, giving President-elect Barack Obama an early victory on healthcare. Unless Congress acts, federal funding for the program expires March 31. The legislation will look similar to bills the House and Senate twice approved in 2007.
Milwaukee-based Aurora Health Care has acquired a 43-person physicians group in northern Illinois. Northern Lake Medical Ltd. primary care clinics serve the Illinois communities of Gurnee, Lindenhurst and Fox Lake. Nick Turkal, MD, Aurora's president and CEO, said the affiliation makes sense because a growing number of Illinois residents seek healthcare services in Wisconsin.
With consumers pressed for time and money, Michigan hospitals are adding services for patients to keep them coming back. The basic, consumer-friendly services are growing as health system officials look for ways to help people in a difficult economy. The services include door-to-door shuttles, increased hours, discounts on care, and even gas cards for poor patients and their families.
An Alabama lawmaker wants Jefferson County to divert sales tax dollars earmarked for Cooper Green Mercy Hospital to help pay down the county's $3.2 billion sewer debt. Sen. Scott Beason, R-Gardendale, said his proposed legislation is a good way to resolve the sewer-debt crisis without any additional burden on taxpayers. The measure would remove a guaranteed funding source for Cooper Green, although Beason said he believed the County Commission would find money from elsewhere in the general fund for the hospital.
Free-standing centers tend to have low infection rates, they typically offer pleasant surroundings in newer construction, and parking's rarely a problem. Yet the proliferation of ambulatory surgery centers has some questioning if the lower cost comes at a higher price than people realize. Foremost among the skeptics are traditional acute care hospitals, which say the ambulatory surgery centers draw healthier patients and patients who are more likely to be insured. That leaves hospitals bearing a greater share of charity care.