When smoke from wildfires drifted dangerously close to a southeast Georgia nursing home last week, Liberty Regional Medical Center launched an emergency evacuation. The more than 100 residents in a Ludowici nursing home were brought to a nearby church. “The evacuation went very smoothly,’’ said Sam Johnson, an executive at Liberty Regional in Hinesville, which…
When rural Georgians need specialized care for serious conditions such as diabetes or heart failure, they’re often faced with limited options and a long drive. Anna Burch drives an hour from Hartwell to Athens to see her physical therapist. “I have to take half a day off work to go,” she said. And while Burch…
Emory Healthcare announced a partnership with St. Joseph’s Hospital on Friday in a move that demonstrates a major shift of power among metro Atlanta hospitals. If the deal gains regulatory approval, Emory would operate hospitals in Midtown Atlanta, Johns Creek and the “Pill Hill’’ section of Sandy Springs, along with its Clifton Road facilities. And…
The news that Grady is closing two neighborhood clinics and raising prescription co-pays shows how cutbacks in government funding can squeeze front-line medical services. Grady Memorial Hospital has come back from the financial brink in just four years, aided by corporate and foundation support and new management. The safety-net hospital is an indispensable part of…
The flurry of Georgia legislation targeting illegal immigrants includes a bill that would place a new reporting requirement on hospitals, nursing homes and other health care facilities. House Bill 296 would require those medical providers to count the illegal immigrants they treat, the type of services provided, the cost of the care, and the method…
Three Georgia hospital systems have gone one step beyond banning smoking on their campuses. They won’t hire people who smoke. The three health systems — Gwinnett Medical Center, DeKalb Medical Center, and Phoebe Putney Health System in Albany — will drop job applicants from their candidate list if a blood test for nicotine comes up…
Piedmont Healthcare and Aetna have reached an agreement on a new three-year contract, averting the possibility that many Georgians would have to choose new physicians and hospitals. Many such contract negotiations between insurers and hospitals come down to the wire before an accord is reached, and it was true in this case. The agreement was…
Maintenance of effort. It sounds like slogan for an auto repair shop. Yet the term has strong implications for many of the nation’s governors, including Nathan Deal of Georgia. A federal provision of the health care reform law, approved last year, required states to retain (“maintain”) their eligibility rules for people covered by Medicaid, the…
The plan to revise Georgia’s new hospital tax has suddenly been shelved, even before the proposal was taken up by the General Assembly. The Georgia Hospital Association said Gov. Nathan Deal voiced opposition Tuesday to the organization’s proposal to change the tax formula for hospitals. Without Deal’s support, “there’s no sense for us to move forward…
The greenest hospital in Georgia was considered a dinosaur five years ago. Its electrical and mechanical systems were outdated, its brick façade breaking down, its emergency department and patient rooms poorly configured. Now, a $43 million transformation of the hospital, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Hughes Spalding, has created an up-to-date facility with environmentally friendly…