More layoffs for healthcare workers. Ballad Health, which provides health care in the Kingsport-Bristol metropolitan area, has announced the furlough of 1,100 employees, including 200 to 250 in Virginia, reports the Herald-Courier. The loss of business due to federal efforts to reduce elective procedures, implemented to conserve personal protective equipment, has been financially devastating. “In the next 90 days, we face up to a $155 million loss,” said Ballad CEO Alan Levine. “We have lost up to 70% of our business, and we don’t know when it will come back.” Bon Secours, which operates multiple hospitals in the Richmond and Hampton Roads metros, also has announced significant furloughs.
Stop the spread between nursing homes! LeadingAge Virginia, an association of nonprofit senior living centers, has asked the Virginia Department of Health for a daily list of nursing homes and assisted living facilities with COVID-19 outbreaks. The request followed revelations of devastating losses at Canterbury Rehab in the Richmond area, where the death toll of residents has reached 37 “We just wanted the names of the communities,” legislative counsel Dana Parsons told the Virginia Mercury yesterday. “We’re not asking them to tell us who’s infected, but it’s helpful to know which facilities are seeing outbreaks.” Knowing where outbreaks are happening is one way to reduce the risk of transmission, the association retorts. Staff often work at more than one facility and can transmit the disease.
The Virginia Department of Health has refused, citing “long-standing policy … not to release the name of facilities unless there is a public health reason to do so.”
Another milestone for health care cartels. Norfolk based Sentara Healthcare and Richmond-based VCU Health System have finalized their joint ownership of the Virginia Premier health plan, reports Virginia Business. Sentara insurer subsidaries, Virginia Premier and Optima Health Plan, now insure more than 840,000. Said Sentara CEO Howard Kern: “It is critical we work together to optimize our health plans’ combined strength to ensure access to quality care and support services for everyone we serve.” Having successfully prevented out-of-state providers and physician groups from competing, the health systems have justified the move into insurance with the argument that vertically integrated systems can more effectively manage health care costs. Yet Virginia health plans are among the most expensive in the country.
