"Hospitals freeze big-ticket plans; Ripple effects feared in Mass. health industry" by Jeffrey Krasner and Casey Ross, Globe Staff | December 14, 2008
The recession is forcing many Massachusetts hospitals to reconsider ambitious expansion projects, put major purchases on hold, and eliminate jobs as revenues and investments shrink.
WTF are HOSPITALS doing involved in INVESTMENTS?
If we ever needed NATIONAL, SINGLE-PAYER HEALTH CARE, it is NOW, readers!
Cutbacks in healthcare, the state's largest industry, could produce a ripple effect extending to nursing agencies, equipment suppliers, and other businesses that support hospitals.
Officials say finances are being hit hard on several fronts: Tight credit markets have made it difficult to borrow money, investment income used to supplement medical revenues has withered or turned to losses, and patients are putting off elective surgery because of high deductibles and copayments, hospital officials say.
Ummm, about that TIGHT CREDIT!!!
As a result, an anticipated boom in hospital building has been drastically curtailed, as projects are downsized, postponed, or scrapped altogether. At the same time, the increasing number of unemployed workers in Massachusetts means more people will probably face gaps in insurance coverage, making them unable to afford costly medical care, said Dr. Marc Bard, partner at the Bard Group, a hospital consulting firm based in Needham.
Hospitals are suffering more in this downturn in part because of the rise of so-called consumer-directed health plans, in which patients pay higher copayments and deductibles when they get care. Those out-of-pocket costs are enough to keep some people from seeking treatment when they are sick....
I do EVERYTHING I CAN to AVOID going to those sickies!
It is the HEALTH CARE SYSTEM that makes you sick!
Since Sept. 30, finances have gotten even tighter. The stock market collapse has cost hospitals millions in investment income - money that is typically used to subsidize and augment income from medical services. Some hospitals are reacting to the economic pressures by reducing budgets and laying off workers.
If it ain't time forsingle-payer like in Sicko, then WHEN, America?!
Last month, Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton cut the equivalent of 76 positions - nearly 4 percent of its workforce - through layoffs and by eliminating vacant positions. Baystate Health of Springfield recently slashed 150 jobs out of about 10,500, and last week, Caritas Christi Health Care, the state's second-largest hospital chain, said it would layoff 160 employees.
Notice how MY NECK of the woods is taking the cuts!! We have enough trouble getting care as it is out here, and now they are cutting back?
One of the biggest effects of the economic downturn is on hospital expansion and renovation projects, which many business leaders had counted on to boost the state's economy. Partners HealthCare Inc., known worldwide for its prestigious teaching hospitals, said it is reducing capital spending by 40 percent, or $1 billion, over the next five years.
Aaaah, the PILFERERS from PARTNERS, 'eh?
See: Why the Nation Doesn't Need Massachusetts Health Care
"While we have succeeded in meeting our operating objectives in fiscal year 2008, the downturn in the economy and investment market has certainly impacted us," said Peter K. Markell, vice president for finance, in a statement. "We will defer substantially all new major capital projects."
Yeah, by RIPPING OFF the STATE and TAXPAYERS!
Baystate, the only academic medical center in Western Massachusetts, said it is rethinking the timing and size of its "Hospital of the Future," a planned $259 million expansion for which it is already demolishing existing buildings....
While the slowdowns and cutbacks stifle hospitals' growth plans, they are unlikely to affect the availability of quality healthcare in Massachusetts, given the state's high number of top-ranked hospitals, according to healthcare quality specialists.
Still, HOW CAN IT NOT? What if MORE PEOPLE NEED CARE?
Still, the past fiscal year, which ended Sept. 30, was bleak for many hospitals. While those with exclusive markets because of their location or specialty services continue to thrive, others have seen profit margins from their medical services collapse....
Those would be the ELITES!!
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