government health

ALSO NOTED: NC hospitals come together to share stroke data; Battle between Denver hospital, Catholic system heats up; and much

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 06:59:50 -0500

> In an effort to improve the quality of stroke care in the state, a group of North Carolina hospitals have come together to create a shared database which collects data on how stroke care is delivered. Article

> The ongoing legal dispute between Exempla Healthcare and the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth Health System has heated up further, with commentators objecting to the imposition of the Catholic Sisters of Charity's religiously-dictated medical guidelines being imposed on Exempla's facilities. Article

> Wal-Mart and its partners are running a small beta pilot test on their new personal health records system, Dossia. FierceHealthIT

> As expected, top executives with troubled government health benefits manager WellCare have resigned in the face of corporate turmoil and a federal investigation. Article

And Finally... All I can say to this is "brrrr!" Article

HCA income up, but bad debt still significant

Thu, 08 Nov 2007 06:59:57 -0500

HCA turned in a nice performance for the third quarter, posting its first quarterly growth in income since going private last year, but like its peers, it's still struggling with unpaid patient bills. The hospital chain just reported that net income grew 25 percent in the third quarter of this year, to $300 million. (This number was boosted by $316 million in income from its sale of two Swiss facilities.) Meanwhile, revenues climbed 5.7 percent, to $6.57 billion, a rise HCA attributed to getting better contracts in place with private and government health plans.

At the same time, however, it calculated that bad debt would eat 10.9 percent of this year's revenues--down from 11.8 percent for the previous quarter, but still significant. Analysts said that HCA faces higher numbers of medically-indigent patients than some competitors, given that 44 percent of its hospitals are in Florida and Texas, where there are more uninsured patients than elsewhere.

To learn more about HCA's financial position:
- read this piece in The Tennessean

Related Articles:
HCA profits fall, smacked down by debt payment. Report
HCA to pay $20 million to settle shareholder suits. Report
Shareholder lawsuits seek to block HCA buyout. Report
HCA settles suit attempting to block the sale of the company. Report

Hospital group wants health coverage requirement

Thu, 22 Feb 2007 19:01:38 -0500

The Federation of American Hospitals (FAH), a trade group representing investor-owned hospitals, has dipped its oar into the growing universal health debate with a proposal of its own. The FAH plan, dubbed "Health Coverage Passport," calls for a federal law requiring all Americans to have health coverage of some kind. Under the proposed rules, individuals would have to take employer-sponsored coverage where available, buy coverage on their own, or if eligible, take advantage of government health plans. Right now, hospital execs say, they're carrying the burden of the medically indigent themselves. "We, in essence, have become insurers of the uninsured," said Victor L. Campbell, FAH's chairman and a senior vice president of HCA.

To work, the plan would require several levels of health insurance subsidies or increased spending. For example, the FAH proposal would require expanding existing Medicaid and state children's health insurance, subsidizing the cost of employer health coverage where employees can't afford the coverage, and helping individuals afford coverage. But it could be expensive. The plan, which the FAH estimates would reach 98 percent of all Americans, would add an additional $115.2 billion in spending to the existing $900 billion that state and federal agencies already spend on healthcare. To date, FAH hasn't suggested how governments will pay for the extra expense.

To get more information on the plan:
- read this New York Times piece
- check out the FAH's proposal
- read the FAH press release (.pdf)

Questions surround Brailer's resignation

Sun, 23 Apr 2006 20:01:37 -0400

Does Dr. David Brailer's resignation late last week signify problems ahead for government health IT? Did the health IT czar quit because he was growing tired of the grind of his weekly commute from San Francisco to Washington or out of frustration with the program's direction? Expect the theories to fly fast and furiously this week in the aftermath of the decision. Brailer told the San Francisco Chronicle that he hopes to continue working in health information technology in the Bay Area.

- see this article from The San Francisco Chronicle

McClellan prescribes HSAs for Medicare

Tue, 07 Mar 2006 19:01:39 -0500

In an interview, CMS head Mark McClellan said the White House is looking at extending the system of health savings accounts to Medicare. Adding private accounts to the current system, of course, would amount to a fundamental change to the government health program for the elderly and disabled and is likely to spark opposition from groups opposed to privatization and taxpayers who can do basic math and are concerned about the program's costs.

McClellan also said Medicare Part D will become more manageable next year as the number of companies offering prescription drug plans falls. McClellan told the AP that market realities will help bring order to what has been an unruly process. "I think you'll see significantly fewer choices available next year," McClellan said, "but they will be choices dictated by the market, by what consumers want." The Medicare administrator also said the deadline for the new Medicare Part D benefit will "probably not" need to be extended, despite suggestions from critics to the contrary. He revealed that 5.5 million people have signed up for the new drug benefit through mid-February.

- see this article from the San Diego Union Tribune

Plans for EHR network in NYC

Tue, 31 Jan 2006 19:01:37 -0500

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced plans for a citywide electronic health records system (EHR) that would serve hospitals and clinics in the Big Apple. The network would provide records access to about 100 hospitals and clinics affiliated with the New York City Health and Hospitals Corp. Around 5 million patients pass through the system each year. The citywide records network, Bloomberg said, "will reduce preventable illness [and]... will save millions of dollars a year wasted on needless procedures." The project will cost around $100 million. In recent years, the city has become a leader in the use of technology to safeguard public health. Under Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden, the city has begun aggressive monitoring of residents with diabetes and is contemplating a similar program to track patients with HIV/AIDS.

- see this article from Government Health IT

PLUS: Privacy advocates "shudder" at the idea that Big Brother is tracking blood sugar levels in New York. Article

Metric: HIT spending to increase 11% annually

Thu, 03 Nov 2005 19:01:35 -0500

Spending on healthcare information technology will grow at a rate of 11 percent per year over the next five years, according to a new market research report by Kalorama Information. By 2009 sales of HIT services and products should reach $38 billion. The report cautions, however, that the US government lacks "a coherent program of support" for healthcare IT investment.

- see this article from Government Health IT

ALSO: Senators Evan Bayh (D-IN) and Richard Lugar (R-IN) are among the sponsors of the Critical Access to Health Information Act, new legislation which would increase federal funding for HIT programs at some isolated rural hospitals. Article

PLUS: The North Carolina Division of Public Health is working with the CDC on a pilot that will give first responders wireless access to PDAs equipped with GIS software. Bradshaw consulting customized software developed by ESRI for the project. Release

Support grows for national patient ID standard

Mon, 31 Oct 2005 19:01:39 -0500

Support appears to be growing for a national data standard for patient identification. Proponents of a National Health Information Network (NHIN) have played down the idea of a national patient identifier for years fearing a political fight with privacy groups that could slow or stall progress. Last week, the Commission on Systemic Interoperability, a federal advisory group, released a report supporting a system that will allow patient data to be correctly identified and shared. A patient ID might be one way but is unlikely to get much support, even though Neal Patterson from Cerner thinks it is needed. In its policy recommendations, the group also suggests new federal privacy rules that would take precedence over the existing patchwork of state regulations, long viewed by many observers as a major obstacle to the development of effective information-sharing.

- see this article from Government Health IT

Legislation targets VA spending, IT services impacted

Wed, 19 Oct 2005 20:01:38 -0400

A bill introduced by Rep. Steve Buyer (R-IN), could lead to major changes at the Department of Veteran's Affairs. The legislation calls for tighter budgetary controls at the agency, which has spent $10 billion over the last decade upgrading its information technology systems. The bill also calls for enhanced authority for the organization's CIO, giving the position the power to green light all IT spending at the agency. The development has caused some observers to speculate that bigger changes may be in the works at the agency. The VA, which developed the popular open-source electronic medical records system VistA in-house to solve its technology problems, has long been seen as a plum target for the private sector.

- see this article from Government Health IT

Privacy measures key to PHR acceptance

Tue, 11 Oct 2005 20:01:37 -0400

Americans like the idea of electronic health records. They are worried, however, about the privacy implications of the technology, especially when it comes to employers and insurance companies. Those are two conclusions highlighted by a recent study funded by the Markle Foundation and conducted by polling group Public Opinion Strategies, which found that more than 60 percent favored personal health records. The group says emphasis must be placed on ensuring consumer confidence in privacy rules and security rules if efforts to create a national health infrastructure are to succeed. Key findings: consumers want control over who gets to see their records and they want access tightly tracked. They also do not want their records shared with employers.

The survey, and a second similar study conducted by Manhattan Research, were released to coincide with a conference on personal health records held in Washington, DC, yesterday. Manhattan's data showed considerably fewer people demanding personal health records but had not released its exact questions as of this morning.

- see this article from Government Health IT
- see this press release from the Markle Foundation
- see this press release from Manhattan