Rep. Bill Pascrell, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee's subcommittee on oversight, has asked the Department of Health and Human Services to investigate HCA, the largest for-profit health care chain in the U.S.
Stat: Lawmaker Requests Investigation Into HCA Over Billing Practices A Democratic House lawmaker with oversight authority is calling for an investigation into the largest for-profit hospital chain in the country, HCA Healthcare. (Cohrs, 9/15)
Axios: HCA Hospital Chain Under Fire From Congress A House oversight committee is asking for a federal investigation of the largest U.S. hospital chain and its admissions practices amid allegations of widespread fraud. (Knight, 9/16)
In other health care industry news —
Bloomberg: US Hospital Losses: 53% Expect To Lose Money This Year, AHA Study Finds An eight-hour emergency room wait. The closing of a local clinic in a high-poverty area of rural Arkansas. Dwindling maternity wards. These are some of the outcomes of the financial pain US hospitals are feeling as spiking costs dictate sometimes-dire decisions. And it’s not getting any better, according to a report Thursday. (Coleman-Lochner, 9/15)
The Boston Globe: Lifespan, R.I.’s Largest Hospital System, Posts $49m Third-Quarter Loss: ‘The Health Care System In Rhode Island Is In Crisis’ Lifespan Corp., Rhode Island’s largest health care system, reported a net loss of $49 million for its third quarter, which closed June 30, forcing the hospital owner to institute a recovery plan to address the ongoing effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Over a nine-month period ending on June 30, Lifespan’s operating loss and net losses mounted to $69.5 million and $142 million, respectively, according to financial documents released to the Globe on Thursday. (Gagosz, 9/15)
Houston Chronicle: Harris Health Says 10,000 Patients Could Lose Services If Proposed Budget Is Not Adopted Harris Health System, one of the largest indigent health care systems in the country, will be operating at a $45 million deficit if the county cannot pass a property tax rate and proposed budget, potentially endangering services to 10,000 patients, county and health system leaders said Thursday. (Gill, 9/15)
Modern Healthcare: Hospital Readmissions Penalties For 2023 Lower Than Expected One-fourth of hospitals will not face readmissions penalties, and those that did not meet the Medicare standard in recent years can expect lower reimbursement cuts, according to preliminary data released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. (Devereaux, 9/15)
Stat: Savvier Buyers Threaten Mental Health Tech's Momentum When the pandemic exposed long-festering problems around access to mental health care, many organizations started panic shopping for apps and virtual services to address the needs of workers. Now, there are signs that some of that sales momentum may slow down as companies take a sober look at their budgets in the face of a rocky economy. (Aguilar, 9/16)
AP: Thousands Of Striking Nurses Return To Work In Minnesota Thousands of nurses returned to work Thursday at Minnesota hospitals following a three-day strike over wage increases and staffing and retention made worse by the coronavirus pandemic. Members of the Minnesota Nurses’ Association at 15 hospitals in the Minneapolis and Duluth areas walked off the job Monday. Nurses could soon learn what impact the strike may have had on efforts to reach a new contract. (9/15)
The Hill: Arrest Made In Threats Against Boston Children’s Hospital The FBI announced on Thursday that it has made an arrest in connection with a hoax bomb threat against Boston Children’s Hospital. U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins said Kathleen Levy of Westfield, Mass., is charged with one count of making a false telephonic bomb threat in connection with a threat made to the hospital on Aug. 30, NBC10 Boston reported. (Mastrangelo, 9/15)
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