Listen Litigation challenging delays in TennCare coverage for people who qualify finally goes to trial this week, four years after a class action lawsuit was filed. TennCare argues the problems are sufficiently resolved, while the Southern Poverty Law Center presses for a more effective fix.
Medicaid Expansion Shows Starkest Contrast Between Tennessee Gubernatorial Contenders
Listen Democrat Karl Dean is banking on Medicaid expansion as his winning issue in Tennessee’s race for governor, while Republican Bill Lee claims the plan would be detrimental. The opposing views represent the sharpest divide between the candidates.
How Salesmen Showed Up In Operating Rooms, And Why Hospitals Are Scrutinizing Their Presence
Listen In an operating room, there’s the surgeon, the anesthesiologist, a surgical tech and a scrub nurse. And in many procedures that involve an implanted medical device, there’s often someone else standing quietly along the back wall — a sales representative working on commission for the maker of artificial joints or bone screws. With the […]
Rural Hospitals Owned By Investors More Likely To Close Amid Financial Hardship, Report Finds
A disproportionate share of the rural hospitals that have closed in the last five years were owned by for-profit companies, including some based in Nashville, according to a new Government Accountability Office report.
Want To Weigh In On TennCare’s Looming Work Requirement? Feedback Period Begins
Listen TennCare wants to hear what people think about a new work requirement, now that the agency has submitted a draft plan to the federal government. But Tennessee is still at least two years away from implementation.
HHS Secretary Lauds Lower ACA Premiums In Nashville While Renewing Case For Repeal
The Secretary of Health and Human Services addressed Nashville health care executives Thursday, announcing that premiums for individual plans on the Affordable Care Act will drop for the first time. Alex Azar said the rates, nationwide, dipped 2 percent after consistent year-over-year increases. Tennessee dropped even more, for the first time.
Cool Springs-Based Community Health Systems Pays $260M To Settle Fraud Case
Listen A massive hospital chain with thousands of employees in Cool Springs and Antioch is on the hook for a quarter-billion-dollar settlement with the federal government. The payout is larger than expected for Community Health Systems, but it also lifts a cloud that has been hanging over the company by protecting it from criminal prosecution.
Nashville’s Struggling VA Hospital Moves Off The List Of The System’s Worst Performers
Listen Middle Tennessee’s struggling VA medical centers may be in the early stages of a turnaround. An annual report from the Department of Veterans Affairs shows both the Nashville and Murfreesboro campuses making improvement.
All The Ways Tennessee’s Senate Candidates Are Sniping Over Health Care
Listen The fiercest attacks in Tennessee’s pivotal Senate race have centered on health care, and perhaps that’s not by chance. Recent polling from NBC/WSJ puts the issue at the top of concerns for American voters.
How HCA’s Playbook Has Changed In 50 Years Of For-Profit Health Care
Listen Nashville-based HCA launched 50 years ago at a time when for-profit health care basically didn’t exist. The company has faced five decades of highs and lows. And as it marks its anniversary, executives are being more candid about how the business model has evolved since 1968.
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