Hundreds of Loudoun County, VA, residents turned out at a public hearing to voice strong opinions about whether to allow HCA Virginia to build a 164-bed hospital in Broadlands. HCA wants to build the 24-hour acute care hospital, Broadlands Regional Medical Center, on a 57.7-acre site. The project has the support of the county Planning Department's staff and a certificate of public need from the state health commissioner, but opponents warned of disturbances from the light, noise, and traffic the proposed hospital would bring.
A bond proposition for a new $1.3 billion charity hospital is on Dallas County's general election ballot. The countywide Parkland proposition would authorize spending up to $747 million in county property taxes, about 60% of the total cost, to build a larger, modern Parkland Memorial Hospital. Hospital revenues and private donations would cover the remainder of the cost.
Starting Jan. 1, Massachusetts residents who do not have health insurance that meets minimum standards set by state regulators could face a hefty tax penalty. A state board has voted unanimously to proceed with the new requirements, but the panel added exemptions for an individual, union, or employer who can show that their plan has comparable benefits. To meet the test, a plan must offer coverage for prescription drugs, preventive and primary care, hospitalization, mental health and substance abuse services, and emergency services.
China has unveiled an ambitious plan to achieve universal healthcare. The plan lays out in broad strokes plans to introduce greater healthcare funding and control prices. The current system leaves out much of the population and forces the rest to pay heavy out-of-pocket expenses. Overhauling China's healthcare system has global significance, given the country's demographic heft, its frequent role as epicenter of infectious diseases, and its growing importance in health innovations.
As the country is engulfed in a financial crisis the likes of which few could have imagined, nothing has changed about healthcare. The nation had a troubled healthcare system before the credit crunch came along, and while other issues have leap-frogged to the top of the nation's attention level, they have not lessened the severity of the healthcare problem.
While hospitals and other providers have long been quick to adopt breakthrough technology in medical devices, procedures, and treatments, less attention has focused on innovations in networking and communications. This is partly because of concerns about breaches in security and patient privacy, and because healthcare until recently was a service always performed locally. But that is about to change, as IT security will eventually meet the expectations of the healthcare industry. When it does, powerful IT networks crisscrossing the globe will change the way much of healthcare is delivered.