HEALTHCARE
CommonWealth Beacon dives into the present and future of health and wellness in Massachusetts through its coverage of medical breakthroughs, regional disparities, insurance reshuffles, and the nitty-gritty of health policy.
Steward has its doctors over a barrel in Optum deal
If the Optum purchase moves forward, Steward will directly transfer the previous provider agreements to Optum without an opportunity for physicians to negotiate a new deal, despite an entirely new corporate change-over.
Could consumer representation on hospital boards have prevented Steward problem?
On The Codcast, Donahue reflected on the history of health planning councils in conversation with hosts Paul Hattis of the Lown Institute and John McDonough of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Health Policy Commission wary of Steward-Optum deal
“I think the underpinning piece is what happens to patients, and what happens to the small community hospitals out there in terms of their ability to stay viable and to provide care,” said commissioner Barbara Blakeney. “The impact of this is just mind-bogglingly complex and potentially harmful.”
Markey, Warren do tag team on Steward’s de la Torre
“So that seat for their testimony was empty today, as empty as the promises which Steward and Ralph de la Torre had made to the state of Massachusetts,” Markey told reporters after the hearing.
Judge orders temporary receivership for Boston nursing home
The receivership order still leaves the door open to a potential closure if the Department of Public Health approves a closure plan filed by the facility in February.
When hospitals make bad neighbors
“The big flashy hospitals that everybody thinks about when we think about the largess of American health care – and they have incredible accomplishments happening inside their walls – one of the things we notice is that not only does it not translate to local communities, but hospitals actually turn out to be pretty poor…
Boston nursing home prepares to shut down
The Benjamin’s financial woes are part of an industry trend, but the nursing home also has had its own unique problems, some of them self-inflicted it would appear.
Steward seeks to sell physician network to Optum
“This is a significant proposed change involving two large medical providers, both in Massachusetts and nationally, with important implications for the delivery and cost of health care across Massachusetts,” HPC Director David Seltz said.
On Steward crisis, Massachusetts Nurses Association head says ‘we invited it in’
As pressure ramps up to find a way to shore up the nine Massachusetts hospitals owned by Steward, which employ about 3,000 nurses represented by the nurses association, Pinkham worries that the state may be in the same position that let Steward get a foothold at the core of the state’s health care system more…
Lots of finger-pointing at health care cost growth hearing
A report released Wednesday estimated total health care spending in Massachusetts at $71.7 billion in 2022, and a per capita health care expenditure of $10,264 per resident, according to the Center for Health Information and Analysis.
SJC upholds Brookline’s phased tobacco ban
The retailers argued that the 2021 Brookline bylaw was pre-empted by a state law approved in 2018 that raised the minimum age for purchasing a tobacco product from 18 to 21. The retailers pointed out that the Brookline bylaw effectively means someone born after January 1, 2000 will not be able to purchase a tobacco…
Worcester Board of Health backs safe injection site
In the centers, individuals can use pre-acquired drugs free of legal consequences under the supervision of medical professionals who could intervene to prevent an overdose from turning fatal.
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