Local hospitals struggle with larger out-of-town competition

Local hospitals in New York are facing steep competition from big-city, out-of-town hospitals that are opening up satellite facilities and forming partnerships with area providers, The Journal News reported.

"They feel big and strong, and they look around and see five little hospitals in the suburbs, and they figure that's part of their service area," Donald Malafronte, head of the healthcare consultancy Urban Health Institute, told The Journal News.

According to the suburban hospitals, the out-of-town organizations are not only pilfering their most profitable patients but also some of their most talented physicians.

Therefore, some of the local facilities are purchasing physician groups. For example, Good Samaritan Hospital added 32 physicians, nine nurse practitioners and two physician assistants to its ranks over the past year, the article noted.

Meanwhile, local Catholic hospitals in the Chicago area struggling to compete with bigger national healthcare systems, according to Crain's Chicago Business.

Despite creating the second-largest healthcare system in the area, the Resurrection Health Care Corp. and Provena Health merger has to go up against two large out-of-town healthcare networks for patients. Novi, Mich.-based Trinity Health and St. Louis-based Ascension Health recently moved into the Chicago healthcare market, boasting stronger finances and lower operating costs, the article noted.

For more information:
- read the News Journal article
- check out the Crain's Chicago Business article