Doctors, advocates, service providers, and others who work with Virginia's poor, elderly, and disabled residents are bracing for steep cuts in services as the state attempts to close a projected $2.5 billion shortfall in its two-year 2009-10 budget. Advocates for those who rely on such services said the cuts would be particularly devastating because Virginia spends relatively little on such programs compared with other states, and many have not fully recovered from the last economic downturn.
For the past year, Paul Levy, president of Boston-based Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, has more than ever before staked his reputation on transparency, particularly about medical errors inside the teaching hospital. The stance has won him praise in some quarters and, in recent months, has sorely tested him as well.
There are 33,000 employees, spouses, and children that are covered by Nasvhille insurance plans that qualify for a new incentive program at Nashville General Hospital at Meharry. The program calls for General to waive co-pays, co-insurance, and deductibles for the employees and their dependents. "If 10% of those individuals, or even 5%, choose General Hospital, you'll significantly shift the payer mix toward a mix that drives real revenue toward the organization," said Reginald Coopwood, MD, chief executive of the Metro Hospital Authority, which runs the hospital.
Hospital officials nationwide are being urged to consider treating patients in hallways as a way to ease emergency department crowding, and some are trying it. Leading the way is Stony Brook (NY) University Medical Center, where a study found that no harm was caused by moving emergency room patients to upper-floor hallways when they were ready for admission. The study's lead author says all hospitals should look at the program's success.
Since 2000, Lloyd Dean has been chief executive officer of Catholic Healthcare West, a 41-hospital network based in San Francisco that is the country's eighth-largest hospital system. In this interview with the San Francisco Chronicle, Dean discusses the potential of healthcare reform in light of the presidential election and current economic crisis, restrictions associated with Catholic healthcare and other issues affecting the health industry and not-for-profit health systems.
John McCain's health plan would bring about a dramatic shift in how millions of people get health insurance coverage. He would let people shop around for plans offered by insurers in other states.
The idea sounds simple, but has huge implications.