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Category Archives: Health Care

Health care transition pains coast

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While local providers are upbeat, there is no avoiding the fact that the Affordable Care Act is having profound effects on rural health care, from patients to hospitals, especially on the Mendocino Coast.

But the ACA is not creating all the challenges, as representatives from Mendocino Coast District Hospital and Mendocino Coast Clinics made clear at a public health care forum hosted by the League of Women Voters of Mendocino County on Feb. 11 in Caspar. What they describe is a system being rapidly transformed by demographic, economic and policy changes that has everyone scrambling to understand and adjust to a new world of domestic health care even as the ACA is rolled out in California.

There is general agreement that many factors contribute to the current health care system turmoil. The question is, is the ACA the solution?

Doctors getting older, patients getting sicker

Wayne Allen, chief financial officer and interim CEO of Mendocino Coast District Hospital, presented data showing that our current system is broken.

Almost one quarter, (24.7 percent), of physicians nationally are 60 years old or older. In California the figure is slightly higher, at 29.2 percent. But at MCDH, 61.5 percent of the doctors are in that age group.

Meanwhile, the incidence of chronic diseases is increasing. Worse, a lot of patients with these illnesses are here. From 44 to 49 percent of adults in Mendocino County have one or more chronic illnesses, according to a California Health Care Foundation graphic that Allen displayed.

Then there are costs.

Nine percent of Americans were enrolled in Medicare in 1965. In 2011, that number increased to 16 percent. We also spend four times as much treating persons over 80 years of age compared to the U.K., Germany, Sweden and Spain.

Yet, in a country that spends so much on health care, 47 percent of Americans were uninsured in 2013. The number is attributable to rising costs to treat the sick and a recession that combined to put health insurance out of reach for many.

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Health care transition pains coast

Health-care deal sent to AG amid cost concerns

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By Andy Metzger

State House News Service

BOSTON -- A proposed hospital acquisition by the state's largest private employer, Partners Health Care, was referred Wednesday to Attorney General Martha Coakley as the state agency overseeing the health-care market determined it would increase health spending, reduce competition and result in increased premiums.

The final report by the Health Policy Commission puts Partners' acquisition of South Shore Hospital and Harbor Medical Associates into a 30-day holding period before the Weymouth institution can join Massachusetts General Hospital, McLean and Brigham and Women's hospitals in the Partners organization.

The commission voted unanimously. Through a spokesman, Coakley's office said it had no comment.

Commission Chairman Stuart Altman said Coakley can block the merger, an action the hospitals could overturn in court, and he raised the specter of anti-trust action.

"Don't rule out the Justice Department. This is also a federal anti-trust law. So there's a state anti-trust law, and then there's a federal anti-trust law," Altman told reporters after the meeting.

HPC director of policy for market performance Karen Tseng said the merger would cause a $23 million increase in total medical expenses, cost the three largest health-care payers an additional $15.8 million, and said a shift in referrals will result in increases of $7.4 million to $10.6 million. On the other hand, according to Tseng, the merger's efficiencies would result in savings of $6.6 million.

She said Partners had made "unsubstantiated" claims of greater savings, some of which were "inconsistent with objective data."

"As groups get bigger they have used their power of bigness to generate higher rates," Altman said. He said, "Our goal is to get total medical expenditures down."

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Health-care deal sent to AG amid cost concerns

Health Care REIT Q4 FFO & Revs Beat Ests – Analyst Blog

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Health Care REIT Inc. ( HCN ), a real estate investment trust (REIT), reported fourth-quarter 2013 normalized funds from operations (FFO) of 99 cents per share, 2 cents ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate and up 14 cents year over year.

The 16.5% year-over-year increase is primarily attributable to robust revenue growth, decent same-store cash NOI (net operating income) and notable portfolio restructuring activity.

Normalized Funds available for distribution (FAD) in the reported quarter stood at 86 cents per share, up from 74 cents per share in the year-ago period.

Total revenue reached $788.6 million, escalating 58.7% year over year. The figure also comfortably exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $784 million.

For full-year 2013, Healthcare REIT reported normalized FFO per share of $3.81 on revenues of $2.88 billion. Results were substantially higher than the prior-year normalized FFO per share of $3.52 on revenues of $1.81 billion. Additionally, normalized FAD for 2013 was $3.36 per share, up from $3.11 per share in 2012.

Inside the Headlines

Total same-store cash NOI in the fourth quarter increased 3.1% from the year-ago period. This included a 6.2% rise in the seniors housing operating portfolio.

During the quarter, Health Care REIT bought 12 properties for about $277.5 million. Also, the company completed 6 asset developments and 2 expansions for $89 million (at a blended yield of 8.0%) during the said quarter.

Additionally, Health Care REIT sold 5 seniors housing triple-net properties and 12 medical office buildings for $112 million. The dispositions also included a loan payoff.

Liquidity

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Health Care REIT Q4 FFO & Revs Beat Ests - Analyst Blog

Health care costs approaching breaking point: economists

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CTV Montreal Published Monday, February 17, 2014 10:22PM EST Last Updated Tuesday, February 18, 2014 8:15AM EST

There are tough choices to make, especially in health care, when it comes to the Parti Quebecois budget due out Thursday, economists say.

The budget could be little more than a political platform, and may never be voted on by MNAs, due to the likelihood of an election to be triggered within days of the budget.

But with an aging population and more expensive treatments, healthcare costs are soaring, and that will prove important in budget handouts.

Reducing the range of services covered could be one solution, but it wouldn't be popular, said Universit Laval economics professor Bruce Shearer.

Reducing services means people wait longer for surgery, people wait longer for tests results, he said, adding that the PQ needs to reconsider cheap public daycare and low tuition fees.

Just don't bet on it anytime soon, he said.

Over time they're going to have to answer those questions, they're going to have to make tough decisions, he said.

The health care system is in urgent need of funding. According to the Quebec Health Care Facilities Association, the system needs an extra $1.2 billion in Thursday's budget for basic costs.

For example, doctors salaries are increasing 9.2 per cent in two years.

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Health care costs approaching breaking point: economists

Community Health Systems Adj. Profit Misses View; Guides 2014 In Line

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Health-care services provider Community Health Systems, Inc. (CYH: Quote), which acquired by smaller rival Health Management Associates, Inc. in late January, reported Tuesday a profit for the fourth quarter that more than halved from last year, reflecting higher impairments and charges as well as a revenue drop amid a decline in admissions.

Adjusted earnings per share significantly missed analysts' expectations, while quarterly revenues matched their estimates. The company also provided earnings and revenue guidance for the full-year 2014, in line with Street view.

The company completed its $7.6 billion cash and stock deal to acquire Health Management Associates on January 27, which was agreed upon on July 30, 2013.

"Our financial and operating results for the fourth quarter reflect a continuation of the challenging operating environment for health care providers over the past year. As we previously announced, weakness in volume, combined with higher bad debts and a less favorable payor mix, affected our operating revenues during the fourth quarter," Chairman and CEO Wayne Smith said in a statement.

The Franklin, Tennessee-based hospitals operator reported net income of $28.18 million or $0.30 per share for the fourth quarter, sharply lower than $62.57 million or $0.69 per share in the prior-year quarter.

Excluding items, adjusted income per share from continuing operations was $0.49, compared to last year's $0.85. On average, 22 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings of $0.67 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Net revenues for the quarter declined 1.4 percent to $3.23 billion from $3.28 billion in the same quarter last year, and matched eighteen Wall Street analysts' consensus estimate of $3.23 billion.

Same hospital admissions decreased 10.5 percent, and adjusted hospital admissions declined 6.7 percent.

Operating margins for the quarter contracted 130 basis points to 7.3 percent from last year as total costs and expenses as a percentage of total revenues increased 130 basis points.

For fiscal 2013, the company reported net income of $141.20 million or $1.51 per share, lower than $265.64 million or $2.96 per share in the prior year. Excluding items, adjusted income per share from continuing operations was $2.40, compared to last year's $3.55.

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Community Health Systems Adj. Profit Misses View; Guides 2014 In Line

Lincoln Named A Top Ten City For Affordable Health Care

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Navigating the health-care landscape can be a challenge for everyone. Across the country, health care expenses can put big dents in family budgets. With this in mind, Livability.com has named Lincoln a Top 10 City for Affordable Health Care, 2014. Lincoln offers some relief with the right prescription of low health-care spending; good access to hospitals, doctors and other providers; plus an excellent quality of life.

For this list of cities for affordable health care, editors not only measured affordability, but also took into account Esri survey data on average per capita spending on health care and related items. They factored in the number of area hospitals, the number of primary care physicians and dentists per capita, as well as quality of life.

And finally, they considered data used to determine the Top 100 Best Places to Live. Specifically, they looked at such factors as walkability, income, the number of farmers markets, and natural environment and climate after all, overall health relates to living in a city with recreational amenities, thriving entertainment districts and cultural assets.

"Health-care costs are rising for most Americans, and the insurance marketplace is a complicated place, says Livability.com editor Matt Carmichael. We wanted to create a list of cities with quality, accessible and affordable health care. But equally importantly, we wanted these cities and towns to be good places to live, too.

Lincoln, Neb., residents have 30 area hospitals from which to choose the highest hospital total for a city on the Top 10 Cities for Affordable Health Care. Having all those choices helps keep medical expenses down for residents here, who (on average) spend 12 percent less on health-care costs each year than the rest of the nation. Lincolns clean environmental record, cultural offerings and recreational activities make it one of our Top 100 Best Places to Live in America.

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Lincoln Named A Top Ten City For Affordable Health Care

Drexel Medicine Nurse-Midwives: Integral to Comprehensive Women’s Health Care – Video

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Drexel Medicine Nurse-Midwives: Integral to Comprehensive Women #39;s Health Care
Drexel Medicine #39;s certified nurse-midwives are an integral part of the comprehensive women #39;s health care available at Drexel Obstetrics Gynecology. Laniece...

By: Drexel Medicine

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Drexel Medicine Nurse-Midwives: Integral to Comprehensive Women's Health Care - Video

Big Data in Health Care – Information Overload, self-service health care, med tech keynote speaker – Video

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Big Data in Health Care - Information Overload, self-service health care, med tech keynote speaker
Keynote speech by Patrick Dixon on Big Data, information overload and making sense of data. Companies lose 80% of customers within 10 seconds - life is too s...

By: Patrick Dixon Futurist Keynote Speaker for Industry Conference

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Big Data in Health Care - Information Overload, self-service health care, med tech keynote speaker - Video


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