HEALTH CARE
Medicare to Penalize 2200 Hospitals for Excess Readmissions More than 2,000 hospitals — including some nationally recognized ones — will be penalized by the government starting in October because many of their patients are readmitted soon after discharge. Some Minnesota hospitals that will be penalized because of their readmission rates include Abbott Northwestern – 9%; Hennepin County Medical Center – 22%; St. Mary’s Rochester (Mayo) – 13%; United Hospital – 23%; Unity Hospital – 32%; Mayo Fairmont – 81%; University of Minneosta Medical Center, Fairview – 17%
Missouri-based Ascension Health Inks Deal with Embattled Debt Collector Ascension Health has signed a new contract worth up to $1.7 billion with a Chicago-based debt collection firm that was banned for Minnesota for alleged hardball tactics.
Mayo Pays Out $64 for Red Wing Clinic With the Red Wing deal, however, Fairview is basically conceding a market to
Mayo, Parente said, perhaps to focus its resources on patients closer to the Twin Cities. In the past, patients in Red Wing needing advanced services traveled either to Fairview in the Twin Cities or to Mayo Clinic hospitals in Rochester, a split that Mayo officials hope will now shift in their direction.
LABOR
Labor Turned Out Big Numbers for Philadelphia Rally Over 35,000 union workers were estimated to have attended Sunday’s Stand for America rally.