Monday, August 27, 2001
Medical Mutual HMO Pulls Out of Cuyahoga County
Medical Mutual of Ohio’s SuperMed health maintenance organization (HMO) has announced it is pulling out of Cuyahoga County, effective Sept. 30. The HMO serves approximately 24,500 members in that county, which will be served by CareSource, Renaissance and QualChoice after Medical Mutual departs. With three remaining plans, Cuyahoga County will stay a mandatory enrollment county.

The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) is looking for a replacement for Medical Mutual, the most recent HMO to pull out of ODJFS’ Medicaid managed care program. In April 1998, 13 health plans statewide participated in the program, which served 313,463 enrollees. That same year, eight health plans served Cuyahoga County. Medical Mutual’s defection brings the number of statewide health plans to seven, which serve nearly 305,000 enrollees.

DAILY NEWS CLIPS

For your daily health care news digest, go to the Hannah News Service's StateHealthClips.com.

Heartbeats of change at Children's Hospital
Akron Beacon Journal
Sunday, August 26, 2001
A prestigious new surgery program is pumping even more business than expected into Children's Hospital Medical Center of Akron.

Looking at medical sites on the Web with a healthy dose of skepticism
Cleveland Plain Dealer
Monday, August 27, 2001
In July, about 26 million people sat down at their computers and logged on to the 15 most popular health sites on the Web looking for information they could trust.

More interest in former RVHS facility
Ironton Tribune
Monday, August 27, 2001
As negotiations continue with Our Lady of Bellefonte Hospital over its use of the former RVHS facility, more interested parties are stepping forward, county leaders said.

Tuesday, August 28, 2001
Workforce Shortage Task Force Work Underway
The Health Care Workforce Shortage Task Force yesterday held its first meeting to begin initial work on addressing the growing health care workforce shortage in Ohio. Created out the of House Bill 94, the state budget bill for 2002-2003, the task force yesterday discussed its key goals, which include reviewing licensing standards and developing recommendations for improving the scope of practice for health care professionals.

Other goals of the group include concentrating on workforce issues that address all segments of the health care workforce, not just licensed professionals, as well as the economic impact of workforce shortages. The task force, chaired by Ohio Department of Health Director J. Nick Baird, also discussed working with a futurist to design a plan for the future health care workforce.

DAILY NEWS CLIPS

For your daily health care news digest, go to the Hannah News Service's StateHealthClips.com.

Mercy nursing students enjoy 50-year reunion
Canton Repository
Tuesday, August 28, 2001
“We had a wonderful time,” noted Marge Boron of the Mercy School of Nursing’s Class of 1951 50th-year reunion. “The hospital and school are gone, but memories linger in the minds and hearts of the nurses who attended nursing school there.”

Hospital's fund-raiser sweet reward for women
Akron Beacon Journal
Tuesday, August 28, 2001
Akron General Medical Center is offering people the chance to feed their sweet tooth while helping uninsured or underinsured women get free mammograms.

Ohio Physicians Saying 'Yes' to Generic Prescription Drugs
Youngstown Business Journal
Tuesday, August 28, 2001
CLEVELAND -- Ohio physicians are receptive to generic drugs that can play a safe and effective, yet less-expensive role in their patients' health, according to the six-month results of a program designed to lower out-of-pocket prescription costs without sacrificing quality of care.

Wednesday, August 29, 2001
CBO Estimates Medicare Part A Trust Fund Will Grow Through 2006
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects in its budget analysis released yesterday that the Medicare Part A trust fund surplus will grow from $29 billion in 2001 to $45 billion in 2006, then gradually decline as baby boomers retire. The projected overall budget surplus has dropped $122 billion from CBO's May projection, and now stands at $153 billion. The report says Bush's tax cut legislation, the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (HR 1836), caused two-thirds of the reduction. About one-third of the reduction comes from a weaker economy and other factors. Despite the projected decline in Part A surpluses, Republicans and the Bush Administration remain committed to providing a prescription drug benefit under proposed Medicare reforms this fall. OHA continues to oppose plans to use the hospital insurance trust fund surplus to subsidize such a drug benefit, or to use Part A to cover projected Part B shortfalls. The CBO report is available at http://www.cbo.gov. (Jonathan Archey, jonathana@ohanet.org)

DAILY NEWS CLIPS

For your daily health care news digest, go to the Hannah News Service's StateHealthClips.com.

Hospital examines partnership
Lorain Morning Journal
Wednesday, August 29, 2001
LORAIN -- Community Health Partners is considering becoming a partner of the giant University Hospitals Health Systems based in Cleveland, a hospital official confirmed yesterday.

Health care players duke it out
Cincinnati Business Courier
Wednesday, August 29, 2001
Strife between physicians, insurers and hospitals continues at a fevered pitch in many areas, Business Journals report. The debate generally centers on reimbursement and control issues.

Lawmakers to debate competing prescription plans
Columbus Dispatch
Wednesday, August 29, 2001
William Case needs $324 worth of insulin every month just to stay alive.

Thursday, August 30, 2001
Preventive Health Grants Plan in Final Stages
The Ohio Department of Health (ODH) will soon secure funds for preventive health in Ohio. ODH will this fall submit its proposed fiscal year 2002 plan for the Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant, administered by the federal government through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The approximately $6.3 million plan includes funds for arthritis, asthma, cardiovascular health, chronic disease surveillance, data and information, emerging infectious diseases, health promotion, the Healthy Ohioans, Healthy Communities program, injury prevention and rape prevention. The largest portion of funds are allotted to cardiovascular health at approximately $2.7 million, and 50 percent all funding goes directly to Ohio’s local communities. Hospitals can check with local health departments for opportunities to collaborate on block grant programs.

DAILY NEWS CLIPS

For your daily health care news digest, go to the Hannah News Service's StateHealthClips.com.

Growth pulls in hospital developers to Warren County
Dayton Daily News
Thursday, August 30, 2001
If they come, we will build it.
That's the mantra for hospital developers flocking to rapidly growing Warren County and Butler County to open medical facilities.

Hospital deal done
Sandusky Register
Thursday, August 30, 2001
It's a medical center.
A new health care organization in Sandusky was born Wednesday night as Firelands Community Hospital completed its purchase of neighboring Providence Hospital.

2 boys collect 3,500 Beanies for hospital
Akron Beacon Journal
Thursday, August 30, 2001
Tanner and Max Crowder probably have more Beanie Babies than any kid you know -- at least 3,500, at last count.  

Friday, August 31, 2001
Ohio Hospitals Could Lose $56 Million in DSH Funding
Hospitals already struggling are bracing for more cuts. If scheduled reductions are allowed to go into effect, Ohio hospitals are in line to lose $56 million in 2003 and 2004 combined. The cuts are part of the Balanced Budget Act passed by Congress in 1997 and impact the amount of Medicaid disproportionate share (DSH) funding hospitals will receive. Legislation introduced earlier this year in Congress could help. Sponsored in the House by Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-KY) and in the Senate by Sen. Lincoln Chafee (R-RI), the Medicaid Safety Net Hospital Preservation Act of 2001 would prevent these cuts from occurring.

Medicaid DSH dollars provide the federal matching funds that go into Ohio’s Hospital Care Assurance Program (HCAP). In the 2001 care assurance program, Ohio hospitals provided $742.9 million in charity care to Ohioans unable to pay their bills. Under HCAP, they received $320.5 million in federal funding to help cover these costs. The remainder was absorbed by hospitals as part of their charitable mission. While the federal allocation for 2002 will increase to $332.8 million, under the 1997 BBA cuts to DSH, hospitals are expected to receive about $40 million less in 2003 and another $16 million less in 2004. This amounts to a loss of $56 million over those two years. For additional information, see the August issue of OHA HealthBeat, at http://www.ohanet.org/Datawatch/datawatch0801.htm.

DAILY NEWS CLIPS

For your daily health care news digest, go to the Hannah News Service's StateHealthClips.com.

Nurses' aid: Shortage leaves hospitals short-handed
Columbus Dispatch
Friday, August 31, 2001
When people think of hospitals, most probably think first of doctors. But it's nurses who monitor your vital signs, who give you your medicine, who check in on you in the middle of the night. It's nurses, not doctors, who provide the vast majority of hospital care.

Akron hospital warns of scam
Akron Beacon Journal
Friday, August 31, 2001
Children's Hospital Medical Center of Akron is warning against a fund-raising scheme from people claiming to represent the hospital.