Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Feud Flares Up In Georgia Between Hospitals And Cancer Treatment Chain
An old battle between Georgia's hospitals and a national cancer treatment chain flared up this fall. The dispute is rooted in Georgia's "certificate of need" process. The regulatory system used to approve expansion or new construction of hospitals and other health care facilities can have a broad effect on local economies and patient options. In 2008, lawmakers approved a new category — "destination" hospital — to accommodate Cancer Treatment Centers of America. The chain, headquartered in Florida, operates in four states and is known for its ads describing access to medical care along with spiritual support and alternative remedies. (Foody, 10/17)
The ongoing fight over Connecticut’s state budget has centered in part on what Connecticut pays hospitals. The industry took the biggest hit in the emergency budget cuts Gov. Dannel P. Malloy issued last month, drawing criticism from hospital leaders and legislators from both parties. (Levin Becker, 10/19)
Boston Children’s Hospital and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have made the top 10 on a new scoreboard for US medical centers with the best patient care — hardly a first for these two world-renowned institutions. (Subbaraman 10/19)
Dimensions Healthcare Corp., which operates Laurel Regional Hospital, is facing a legal challenge from two Laurel residents and the union representing the hospital's employees, a suit the plaintiffs hope will stop the hospital from being closed. Dimensions plans to close Laurel Regional Hospital and replace it with an ambulatory care center, which is estimated to cost about $24 million. (Michaels, 10/16)
Jerry Wolfe has spent the vast majority of his 91 years within shouting distance of Rattlesnake Mountain. The mountain keeps watch over the Cherokee village, hub of the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians’ Qualla Boundary home, tucked into the Great Smoky Mountains of Western North Carolina. Last Thursday – a postcard-perfect early-autumn morning, the brilliant sun inching past Rattlesnake – the Cherokee community welcomed some 500 guests to the ribbon-cutting of their $82 million, 155-000-square-foot Cherokee Indian Hospital. (Sisk, 10/19)
