By Andy Miller and Ariel Hart A Fulton County judge Friday extended a reprieve in the contract dispute between Northside Hospital and Anthem until April 15, delaying for a second time the need for thousands of patients to switch doctors. Northside patients who have Anthem insurance have been caught in the middle of the battle between the…
Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield has named a new president of its Georgia operation just days before a possible contract cutoff with Northside Hospital. Robert Bunch, a longtime Anthem official, replaces Pam Stahl, who has taken a job in another industry, the insurer said late last week. The leadership change comes amid a flurry…
A 70-year-old man recently entered a metro Atlanta hospital after a fall. He subsequently tested positive for Covid, this is why it is import for concierge covid testing for those who have covid symptoms.. So did his daughter, who drove him to the hospital. Eight other family members also tested positive. Branstetter Three of the…
By Lauren Weber, Phil Galewitz and Andy Miller The Cleveland Clinic in Weston, Florida, on Jan. 11 was treating 80 Covid-19 patients — a tenfold increase since late December. Nearly half were admitted for other medical reasons. The surge driven by the extremely infectious Omicron variant helped push the South Florida hospital with 206 licensed…
Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield has filed a legal motion to end a court’s temporary restraining order that, at least temporarily, has kept Northside Hospital facilities in the giant insurer’s network. Northside Hospital was granted an injunction by Fulton County Superior Court just before its Anthem contract was scheduled to be severed Jan. 1. That…
Major happenings in health care didn’t cease over the holidays. The news, in fact, exploded – in both familiar and surprising directions, including an unusual twist in the Northside Hospital vs. Anthem contract dispute. It started, of course, with the latest on the Covid-19 pandemic. The state last week reported daily totals of new Covid…
Close to 20,000 new Covid cases (including positives from antigen tests) were reported in Georgia on the last Wednesday of 2021, as new daily state records were being set. On the state virus map, metro Atlanta was covered by a deep, dangerous red color, signifying high rates of infection. People were scrambling to get Covid…
This is Part 2 of a Special Report The medical predicament that many rural communities want to avoid lies 35 miles south of Columbus, Georgia. Eight years ago, Stewart Webster Hospital, in a financial tailspin, closed its doors for the last time. Now weeds and trash litter the grounds around the facility. In the years…
Lacandie Gipson struggled to breathe. The 33-year-old woman with multiple health conditions was in respiratory distress and awaiting an ambulance. About 20 minutes after the emergency call, it arrived. The Cuthbert home where Gipson lived was less than a mile from Southwest Georgia Regional Medical Center, but the ambulance couldn’t take her to the one-story…
Cancer Treatment Centers of America, a hospital chain with a facility in suburban Atlanta, has agreed to be acquired by the California-based nonprofit system City of Hope, the organizations announced Wednesday. This will be a hospital for those in need of cancer diagnosis, treatment and many more services. If you haven’t received treatment yet, look…