Virus hospitalizations surge as pandemic shadows U.S. election
Indiana, Missouri, Oklahoma, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota, and New Mexico all reported record high hospitalizations this week.
Hospitals
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IU Health net income falls 63% in first nine months of year in wake of COVID-19
Thestates’ largest hospital system saw decreases in admissions, surgical cases, ER visits and inpatient days; overall, patient service revenue fell about 2.5% during the nine-month period.
FBI warns ransomware assault threatens U.S. health care system
The aggressive offensive by a Russian-speaking criminal gang coincides with the U.S. presidential election, though there was no immediate indication it was motivated by anything but profit.
Hospitals nationwide see flood of COVID-19 patients
Forty-one states and Puerto Rico have more hospitalized COVID-19 patients now than at the end of September, and 22 of those states have seen increases in excess of 50%, according to health data analyzed by The Washington Post.
Three area hospital systems call racism a ‘public health crisis’
The joint statement by Indiana University Health, Community Health Network and Eskenazi Health is the latest pledge by Indianapolis-area business groups to address racial inequities.
Eli Lilly, hospitals go to war over drug prices
A long-simmering dispute between Eli Lilly and Co. and safety-net hospitals across the nation over the price of prescription drugs has reached the boiling point.
Cyberattack hobbles major hospital chain’s U.S. facilities
Universal Health Services Inc., which operates more than 250 U.S. hospitals and other clinical facilities, said Monday that its network was offline and doctors and nurses were resorting to “back-up processes” including paper records.
Catholic hospital giant Ascension suffers $1 billion yearly loss
Like many other providers, Ascension suspended all elective, nonessential medical and surgical procedures for several months to prepare for the surge of COVID-19 patients, reducing volume and revenue.
Aunt Bertha software helps connect patients to services
Hospital systems say their aim is to provide a helpful clearinghouse for patients in need of housing, transportation, food and other critical services—factors sometimes called “social determinants of health.”
Study: Indiana ranks sixth in nation in hospital charge disparities
A new study released Friday by the Rand Corp. found that Hoosiers covered by employer health plans paid Indiana hospitals three times what Medicare would have paid for the same procedures, exceeding the national rate of disparity.
IBJ Podcast: Dissecting IU Health’s plans for a 44-acre campus downtown
IBJ’s John Russell joins podcast host Mason King to talk about what IU Health has revealed about its proposed Methodist Hospital campus—and what key questions remain.
Ballyhooed Simon Cancer Center to empty out by 2026
Just 12 years after opening to great fanfare, the future of the $150 million center, a partnership between the Indiana University School of Medicine and Indiana University Health, is full of questions.
New COVID-19 mandates on health care facilities get pushback
Threatening fines and funding cut-offs, the Trump administration on Tuesday issued new COVID-19 requirements for nursing homes and hospitals.
Gutwein resigns as CEO of Health and Hospital Corp.
The sudden departure follows accusations that Matthew Gutwein, 57, exploited legal loopholes to shift millions of dollars from nursing homes to the system’s Eskenazi Hospital and other programs.
Pandemic pushes expansion of ‘hospital-at-home’ treatment
Across the U.S., “hospital at home” programs are taking off amid the pandemic, thanks to communications technology, portable medical equipment and teams of doctors, nurses, X-ray techs and paramedics.
IU Health sees operating income plunge 34% over first half of year
The pandemic took a huge bite out of routine surgeries and other highly profitable procedures at the state’s largest hospital system.
Community Health loses $40M in first half of year, cuts 80 administrative jobs
The hospital has made more than $60 million in cuts, including the elimination of its 401(k) match through the rest of the year and the closing of a rehabilitation hospital in Kokomo.
Pandemic puts small hospitals in peril over Medicare advance payments
Indiana’s weakest and often smallest hospitals, usually with just a few dozen beds, might be only months from beginning the process of shutting their doors, industry leaders say.
Wealthy hospitals get billions in federal bailout funds
Some are asking whether coronavirus aid funds are flowing to the neediest hospitals, or to those that already have deep financial resources, as the money is doled out to thousands of institutions nationwide.
Months of trial, error in ICUs offer clues on how to save COVID-19 patients
Collective experience might be showing results. U.S. deaths, which often ranged between 2,000 and 3,000 a day in April and May, have mostly remained below 1,000 and in the low hundreds since the beginning of June.