Milwaukee-based Froedtert Health has closed on an agreement with Ascension Wisconsin to purchase sole ownership of Network Health, an insurer offering commercial and Medicare plans in 23 Wisconsin counties.

Officials in California's San Joaquin County voted to extend a hospital management agreement with a health system owned by Chicago-based CommonSpirit, using $4.5 million of taxpayer funds to do so, according to a Nov. 15 Stockton Record report.

Arkansas lawmakers gave preliminary approval for four more rural hospitals to receive federal American Rescue Plan Act funds, Arkansas Advocate reported Nov. 18. 

Bristow, Okla.-based Carrus Lakeside Hospital is set to reopen after nearly two years of the rural community not having a hospital, local news outlet KJRH reported Nov. 15.

10 hospitals and health systems recently posted job listings seeking revenue cycle vice presidents. 

Big Tech and retail giants continue to expand into healthcare, investing more money in value-based care and putting more pressure on hospitals and health systems to bend the cost curve and prioritize digital health investments capable of providing value. 

UM Harford Memorial Hospital in Havre de Grace, Md., part of the University of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Health, is expected to close early next year, The Baltimore Sun reported.

New York City-based Mount Sinai Hospital has been downgraded amid ongoing operating weaknesses, Fitch said Nov. 14.

St. Petersburg, Fla.-based Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital reported an overall loss of $1.9 million for the three months ending Sept. 30, according to a Nov. 14 filing.

Salaries and benefits at West Orange, N.J.-based RWJBarnabas Health increased 13.7% in the most recent reporting period even as an ongoing strike at one of its hospitals saved on wages, according to a Nov. 14 filing.

The Consumer Price Index, a measure of the price of goods and services, remained unchanged in October, as consumer prices rose 3.2% overall from last year, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Grand Rapids, Mich.-based Corewell Health reported revenue of $11.2 billion in the first nine months of 2023, an 11.6% increase on the previous year's period.

Danville, Pa.-based Geisinger Health, which is set to become the first health system incorporated into Kaiser Permanente's Risant Health project, has reported an operating loss of $104.4 million for the nine-month period ending Sept. 30.

On Tenet Healthcare's third-quarter earnings call, CEO Saum Sutaria, MD, said the Dallas-based system is concerned about the degree of denial activity it is seeing from some health plans. 

Attorneys for St. Petersburg, Fla.-based Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital said they plan to appeal the verdict that requires the hospital to pay $261 million in damages to the family of 17-year-old Maya Kowalski, whose case was made famous by a Netflix documentary, the Tampa Bay Times reported Nov. 13. The appeal is likely to delay payments until next year, but if unsuccessful, the hospital could face significant headwinds. 

Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare may be coy about giving guidance for 2024 but it has big plans for the next few years as it seeks to build its market share to 29% by 2030.

Healthcare is kind of like cereal, according to a Nov. 13 LinkedIn article by Robert Pearl, MD. 

Here are 63 health systems with strong operational metrics and solid financial positions, according to reports from credit rating agencies Fitch Ratings, Moody's Investors Service and S&P Global in 2023. 

Reducing expenses doesn't always mean making cuts. Sometimes it takes an initial investment to realize future savings.

Inpatient revenue may be as much as 21% under budget as El Centro (Calif.) Regional Medical Center reported a number of metrics detailing pressure on the distressed system.