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Every eligible hospital in North Carolina has opted in to Gov. Roy Cooper’s medical debt relief initiative, which promises extra payments to hospitals that agree to forgive old medical debt and beef up their charity care policies, state officials said Monday. The program calls for hospitals to wipe out about $4 billion in medical debt for nearly 2 million low- and middle-income patients across the state, according to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services. (Crouch, 8/13)

Crozer Health, the four-hospital system in Delaware County, will shutter all operating room services at Taylor Hospital in Ridley Park by Sept. 1. A spokesperson for the financially distressed health system did not respond to a request for comment. The decision to end operating room services comes as Crozer’s parent company, Prospect Medical Holdings, scrambles to offload the system to New Jersey-based CHA Partners. In February, Prospect agreed to a court-approved deal to sell Crozer within 270 days. (Cooper, 8/12)

Steward Health Care, the hospital system entangled in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, has announced the postponement of a sales hearing for its Florida hospitals from Aug. 22 to Sept. 10. Attorneys for Steward filed documents to delay that hearing and two more involving hospitals in other states its hopes to shed as part of bankruptcy proceedings. (Mayer, 8/13)

Vermont's Office of Professional Regulation (OPR) fired a warning shot across the bow of the state's IV therapy clinics and medical spas in a public statement last week, saying what they do "indisputably constitutes the practice of medicine," and requires them to follow strict rules governing prescriptions, drug compounding and the administering of IVs. The OPR and Board of Medical Practice said they have recently received "reports of inappropriate activities occurring at IV therapy clinics/spas, including out-of-scope practice and unlicensed practice of medicine." (D'Ambrosio, 8/13)

�鶹Ů�� Health News: California Bill Would Require State Review Of Private Equity Deals In Health Care 

A bill pending in California’s legislature to ratchet up oversight of private equity investments in health care is receiving enthusiastic backing from consumer advocates, labor unions, and the California Medical Association, but drawing heavy fire from hospitals concerned about losing a potential funding source. The legislation, sponsored by Attorney General Rob Bonta, would require private equity groups and hedge funds to notify his office of planned purchases of many types of health care businesses and obtain its consent. It also reinforces state laws that bar nonphysicians from directly employing doctors or directing their activities, which is a primary reason for the doctor association’s support. (Wolfson, 8/13)

On a recent Wednesday morning, a man who goes by the nickname Spraq was packing his belongings onto a bike trailer, preparing for the sweep he thought might come later that day on Coral Street. Spraq, who ended up on the streets after the truck he was living in got repossessed about 10 years ago, was camping in the park until police kicked everyone out. He and his ex-girlfriend moved to a nearby street, and two days later, police found them, threw away his ex’s clothes and other possessions, and forced them to move on, Spraq said. So they moved into a parking spot on the street outside Costco – a place where they’d camped without issue many times before, he said. Again, police found them, said they couldn’t be there, and threw away their belongings, Spraq said. “They kept doing that until we had nothing,” he said.  (Kendall, 8/12)

New Jersey Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr. is once again in the hospital, just days after being discharged following a lengthy stay and less than three months before Election Day, according to two people with knowledge of the situation. Pascrell, 87, was discharged from St. Joseph’s in Paterson Wednesday following a three-week stay for a respiratory infection and fever, at one point being placed on breathing assistance. He checked out and entered a rehabilitation facility but checked into St. Barnabas in Livingston on Sunday evening, according to one of the people. Both people were granted anonymity to discuss Pascrell’s health in advance of an official announcement. (Friedman, 8/12)