A provision buried in the budget bill authorized by Congress extends the moratorium on physician-owned specialty hospitals for another six months, BusinessWeek reports. That means supporters who had hoped to launch new project when the moratorium on new businesses ran out on February 15th will have to wait. The magazine examines the pro-market arguments in favor of physician-run hospitals and the counterargument that more facilities could hurt the ability of larger hospitals to provide care. Physician backers say the criticism overlooks the advantages of specialized medicine. "We're focused on doing one thing and doing it extremely well," notes Dr. John W. Dietz, Jr., of Indiana Orthopaedic Hospital in Indianapolis. "We think focused care is a great model for medicine."
- see this article from BusinessWeek