Holy Cross, Sinai Health System in talks to affiliate (Updated Thursday)(Crain's) — Holy Cross Hospital, a struggling community hospital on the Southwest Side, is in talks to become part of Sinai Health System on the West Side, the hospitals announced on Wednesday.Holy Cross, a Catholic hospital, has been looking for a partner since June, when Nashville, Tenn.-based Vanguard Health Systems Inc. walked away from a deal to buy the 274-bed facility.A tie-up with Sinai, a 421-bed, three-hospital system that includes Mount Sinai Hospital and Schwab Rehabilitation Hospital, would allow both safety-net systems to benefit from economies of scale and allow Holy Cross to tap into Sinai's stronger and broader network of specialists, according to a joint statement and a Holy Cross spokesman.“To bring the relationships ... Continue reading →

News briefs: Advocate operating income takes hit from expenses May 24, 2012 Advocate operating income takes hit from higher expenses Advocate Health Care Network's operating income decreased almost 21 percent, to $42 million, in the first quarter, from $53 million in first-quarter 2011, as expenses rose faster than revenues. Total revenue grew by 6.5 percent, to nearly $1.13 billion in the first quarter, up from almost $1.06 billion during the same time period in 2010, driven partly by the acquisition of doctor groups, according to a financial statement. Meanwhile, expenses climbed 7.9 percent, to nearly $1.1 billion, during the first quarter, compared with the year-earlier period. “The decline (in operating income) is attributed to providing care to an increasing number of patients without insurance or ... Continue reading →

News briefs: Advocate operating income takes hit from expenses May 24, 2012 Advocate operating income takes hit from higher expenses Advocate Health Care Network's operating income decreased almost 21 percent, to $42 million, in the first quarter, from $53 million in first-quarter 2011, as expenses rose faster than revenues. Total revenue grew by 6.5 percent, to nearly $1.13 billion in the first quarter, up from almost $1.06 billion during the same time period in 2010, driven partly by the acquisition of doctor groups, according to a financial statement. Meanwhile, expenses climbed 7.9 percent, to nearly $1.1 billion, during the first quarter, compared with the year-earlier period. “The decline (in operating income) is attributed to providing care to an increasing number of patients without insurance or ... Continue reading →

Dental implant groups fight over name as business grows (Crain’s) — A Chicago-based association for implant dentists is suing a Florida upstart group, in a case that highlights the booming specialty of replacing teeth.The 61-year-old American Academy of Implant Dentistry alleges that the North Miami Beach, Fla.-based American Dental Implant Association is trying to pass itself off as the older group in mailings and other materials to unfairly recruit dentists looking for training and credentials in the field of implants, according to a complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Chicago.Some dentists, confused by the Florida group’s use of the name “American Implant Dentistry Association,” have obtained services from that group when they thought they were getting them from the 4,000-member Chicago operation, the ... Continue reading →

Fairview Health Services, the system at the center of the controversy with billing and collections company Accretive Health, will not renew the contract of President and CEO Mark Eustis (PDF). The Fairview board did not renew Eustis' contract during a special meeting on Wednesday, the Minneapolis-based system said in a statement. Eustis will retire July 31. Chuck Mooty, Fairview's board chairman, was named interim chief executive. Fairview's billing and collection contract with Accretive Health was the subject of a highly critical six-volume report by Minnesota's attorney general. The report suggested that Accretive may have violated emergency room access, privacy and consumer protection laws, claims that the company has denied. Fairview Spokeswoman Jennifer Amundson declined to comment on whether the decision not to renew was directly ... Continue reading →

Durkin close to U.S. judgeship; Springfield moves a bit on Medicaid, pensions May 22, 2012 Three full years after his name formally was submitted to the White House, President Barack Obama has nominated Chicago lawyer Thomas Durkin to a slot on the federal bench here. Mr. Durkin, the brother of state Rep. James Durkin, R-Western Springs, is a partner at Mayer Brown LLP and a former federal prosecutor. He'll succeed U.S. District Court Judge Wayne Andersen, who retired. Mr. Durkin's name first was submitted in August 2009 by U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill, and later backed by the state's then-new GOP senator, Mark Kirk. I'm not quite sure why it took this long, but both senators announced the nomination in nearly identical press releases last ... Continue reading →

State Democrats offer $240 million in Medicaid cuts (Crain's) — Ten days before the end of the spring session, Democrats in the General Assembly introduced a bill Monday that would reduce Medicaid reimbursements by $240 million, less than proposed by Gov. Pat Quinn but large enough to help fill a gaping budget deficit. The reductions are well below the $675 million in cuts Mr. Quinn proposed in April as part of a plan to reduce a budget shortfall of $2.7 billion in the federal-state health care program for the poor.But lawmakers found savings elsewhere in the program, which means rates don't need to be trimmed as much as anticipated, said Rep. Sara Feigenholtz (D-Chicago), who introduced the measure, which is technically an amendment to an ... Continue reading →

Shareholder sues Allscripts, seeks proxy fight May 22, 2012 (Reuters) — One of Allscripts Healthcare Solutions Inc.'s largest shareholders sued the company on Monday to be allowed to launch a proxy fight after its chief executive refused demands to resign. HealthCor Management L.P., which owns about 5 percent of Allscript's outstanding shares, filed a lawsuit in Delaware's Court of Chancery seeking to strike a company bylaw that requires board nominees be proposed in January. Chicago-based Allscripts, a provider of health care information technology services, terminated the contract of its former chairman last month. Three directors on its then nine-member board also resigned, along with the chief financial officer. The company's shares plummeted as much as 40 percent following the resignations, and days later CEO Glen ... Continue reading →

News briefs: Rush operating income drops May 22, 2012 Rush operating income dropsRush University Medical Center’s net operating income fell nearly 33 percent, to $50.1 million, during the three quarters that ended March 31, from $74.2 million during the year-earlier period, as expenses rose faster than revenue. Rush, a three-hospital network that in January opened its new, 14-story building on the Near West Side, said revenue increased just 2.5 percent, to $1.33 billion, in those nine months, from the year-earlier period. Total expenses — partly because of the new tower — rose 4.7 percent, to $1.28 billion, from $1.23 billion during the year-earlier period. The hospital had a record 5,260 emergency room visits in March, a spokeswoman notes.Midwest ranks 3rd in health care spending: reportSpending ... Continue reading →