Kentucky Healthcare Strategy Forum

April 2006 Newsletter

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KHSF Spring Program  

Healthcare Business and 
Technology Forecast

In response to interest in having Sg2 present at a KHSF program, we have scheduled this event to coincide with the KHA Annual Convention in Covington , Kentucky .  The program will be on Tuesday, May 16 from 1:00 pm -4:30 pm .  Please make plans to attend this very informative program.  To details on how to register, go to www.kyha.com/conv06.htm.

The industry continues to develop new technologies faster than the market can adopt and interpret the results.  Sg2 is an innovative research company based in Chicago whose primary purpose is the monitoring of these technologies and the adoption and success rates of each.  They employ a comprehensive team of professionals with the clinical, strategic, business and financial expertise to research the products and educate our industry.  It is challenging for all organizations, regardless of size, to maintain a knowledgebase of these applications and technologies.  Sg2 provides a wonderful alternative to developing your own internal technology assessment team.  Further, they have the access to industry professionals relative to the technology, medical experts and regulatory authorities. 

 
Academic Scholarship Available

We are excited to announce it's Scholarship time again!  We are starting a little earlier this year with the goal of soliciting a greater number of responses.  Last week, twenty-five (25) letters were sent to all Kentucky colleges and universities to inform them of the wonderful opportunity offered by the Kentucky Healthcare Strategy Forum (KHSF).  KHSF is offering a $1,000 scholarship to a candidate, who has completed at least two years of undergraduate work, seeking opportunities in healthcare planning or marketing in the state of Kentucky .  As we all know, costs continue to rise in every field and this is a great opportunity for a student to subsidize their tuition payments.  While you must be a member of the KHSF to be eligible for such award, this can be accomplished with a mere $15 payment to cover your annual dues.  In fact, this is a great investment for anyone seeking to network with other individuals in the field of healthcare planning and marketing, even in lieu of the scholarship.  The KHSF currently has 47 members from across the entire state of Kentucky .  These individuals can share their knowledge and experiences to assist as you seek out your future opportunities.  Please pass the information along to anyone you know who may be interested.  Take advantage of the opportunity to network with future peers and obtain some additional funding to complete your education at the same time.

 

 

 

2006 Kentucky General Assembly  

The 2006 Legislative Session is slowly drawing to a close.  Many health care issues and bills that would have positively or negatively impact hospitals and physicians were considered with only a few passing both Houses.  Some of the bills of interest are highlighted below:  

HB380, the budget bill, is expected to be voted on Monday, April 10, after extensive negotiations between House and Senate leaders.  The final version is expected to include several positive hospital provisions, including the cap on the hospital provider tax and full DSH funding.  The hospital provider tax will be $180 million this year and during the 2006-2008 Biennium.  Any funds in excess of the cap will go to the Hospital Payment Improvement Trust fund and matched by the federal government to further enhance hospital inpatient Medicaid payments.  

SB 1, the constitutional amendment for malpractice reform did not pass this session.  The bill did not have enough votes to pass the Senate when it was called, but Senator Williams made a procedural motion so that it could be reconsidered if they had been able to get two more votes to support the initiative.  Ron Weston, a Democrat from Louisville , who publicly opposed malpractice reform, filled the vacant Senate seat.  This election has resulted in a Senate that has 21 Republicans, which was two short of the required 23 votes to pass a constitutional amendment.  Rep. DeWeese and Rep. Draud introduced a House bill, HB 721 that included a constitutional amendment.  HB 722, a companion bill to HB 721 was also introduced that outlines some of the medical liability reforms that would be allowed if HB 721 passes. Neither bill received any consideration.  HB 700, which included some reforms, passed out of committee but did not include a constitutional amendment, also was not considered.

 

HB240 and HB34, two bills that would have mandated infection rate reporting by hospitals, remained in Health and Welfare committee after a statewide effort by hospitals to contact their legislators to oppose the bill.  The bill would have required new state reporting requirements for hospital-acquired infections that would duplicate quality initiatives already underway at the federal level, waste precious health care resources, add costs to hospitals and the state, and creating unnecessary confusion among patients.

HB445, the bill, which will encourage small businesses (2-25 in size) to purchase health insurance, hopefully expanding coverage for some of the uninsured in our community, passed the House and was being considered by the Senate.  Some very negative provisions on the bill regarding transparency, the elimination of balance billing, and the elimination of the prompt pay legislation that passed a few years ago were removed prior to passage.  Some revised transparency language regarding hospital reporting of costs and quality were added back to the bill in the Senate committee.  This language is very similar to another bill introduced by Rep. Burch, HB 622.   However, following a series of meetings between the KHA, KMA, the Chamber and the Cabinet, acceptable language was agreed to by all of the parties.

 Other bills of Interest:

SB 65, which allows for the expansion of the advanced registered nurse practitioner’s abilities to prescribe medications passed both the Senate and the House and was signed by the Governor.  

HB 477, which sets out the need for a statewide initiative to reduce the impact of cardiovascular disease in Kentucky , was passed.  A board and the framework for the initiative were included in the bill.  

HB 57, which establishes a statewide electronic registry for organ and tissue donation was passed and signed by the Governor.  

SB 210, which allows a plaintiff to name third party or others to a lawsuit at anytime essentially eliminates the statute of limitations and will likely increase malpractice premium rates passed the Senate, but was not voted on by the House.  

For more information on these and other bills, visit KHA’s Web site in the “Advocacy” section.

 

 

The Medical Center Contracts with 
IN Compass Health for Hospitalist Services

After an in-depth review and selection process The Medical Center in Bowling Green has retained IN Compass Health to provide hospitalist services for The Medical Center.  IN Compass is based in Atlanta , Ga. , and the company’s sole focus is providing hospitalist services.  IN Compass is led by CEO and founder, Robert Holloway, M.D.  Dr. Holloway was one of the nation’s first hospitalists and still actively provides direct patient care. 

The Medical Center elected to pursue the hospitalist strategy for several reasons including ER call coverage issues, a growing number of physicians who prefer to just see patients in their office, and an increasing number of referrals to The Medical Center from surrounding counties.  The Medical Center also anticipates achieving cost efficiencies and improved patient care because hospitalists will be available 24/7, and they specialize in providing evidence-based medicine in a cost-effective manner.

The hospitalist initiative is a voluntary program, so physicians can either continue to see their own patients in the hospital, or they can utilize the hospitalist program.  The Medical Center has begun interviewing candidates and hopes to have the program up and running sometime this summer. 

 

 State Health Plan Update

 

Changes to the State Health Plan (SHP) were adopted through emergency regulation on January 31, 2005 .  Certificate of Need review criteria was amended in several notable areas including criteria for expansion of existing and new acute care hospitals, physical rehab beds, level II neonatal beds, psychiatric beds, MRI , and radiation therapy and PET.

New Acute Care Hospital:  In order to justify a new acute care hospital (1) the overall occupancy of existing acute care beds in the planning area must be greater than 80 percent OR (2) the applicant must show that each licensed acute care hospital in the planning area has an adjusted revenue more than 150 percent of the state mean adjusted revenue during each of the last three years or has had either final termination of their Medicare or Medicaid provider agreement, final revocation of their license or final revocation of their Joint Commission accreditation. 

Acute Beds:  An application to expand acute beds may be considered if the applicant demonstrates that its occupancy rate has exceeded the target occupancy rate for the past 12 months or the applicant can demonstrate that the hospital has reached functional capacity.

Physical Rehabilitation Beds:  The plan contains a formula to determine the maximum number of beds that could be obtained by an existing hospital seeking to establish a new rehab unit.  New hospital-based units are required to have at least 10 beds and free standing facilities must have at least 40 beds.

Level II Neonatal Beds:  The bed need formula for Level II beds has been changed from three to four beds per 1,000 ADD births, and the occupancy level of existing providers must be at least 70 percent.  The minimum unit size is eight beds. 

Psychiatric Beds:  Licensed and approved adult and geriatric psychiatric beds in an ADD shall not exceed 0.2 beds per 1,000 geographic population.  Licensed and approved children or adolescent psychiatric beds in an ADD shall not exceed 0.2 beds per 1,000 geographic population.  An exception to the capacity criteria has been added which allows hospitals to add beds even if the ADD does not show need as long as the facility can demonstrate functional capacity has been reached.   

MRI :  The need for MRI services is determined by using a smaller planning area-the county of the proposed MRI and all contiguous counties instead of the ADD.  Hospitals without MRI services at their facility will continue to be able to establish MRI services at their existing campuses.  Those desiring to establish new MRI services off a hospital campus must demonstrate that a minimum number of scans will be performed (2,500 scans for fixed units and 1,850 for mobile units). 

Radiation Therapy and PET:  The planning criteria for both have been changed from the ADD to the county of the proposed program and all contiguous counties.

Letters of Intent

Following the sunset of the moratorium on the CON program, health care providers are jumping at the opportunity to expand services to meet growing demands across the state.  Nine hospitals filed letters of intent by the February deadline to add new beds or convert or move existing beds.  Up to 431 additional acute care beds could be added in the state based upon the details of the letters of intent.  Another 293 acute beds are being relocated.  Six psychiatric/chemical dependence hospitals filed letters of intent to either convert or add beds for psychiatric or chemical dependency treatment which could result in an additional 186 beds in the state.  Several letters of intent were filed pertaining to establishing ambulatory care centers and ambulatory surgical centers. 

A copy of the SHP and the March 2006 CON Newsletter containing the CON Public Notice can be found at http://chfs.ky.gov/ohp/con/default.htm.  

 2005 Recipient of the KHSF Academic Scholarship

Courtney Jean Carter

The scholarship is designed to recognize a student with an interest in health care planning and marketing.  Courtney Jean Carter is the 2005 recipient of the Kentucky Healthcare Strategy Forum’s Scholarship.

 

Courtney is a student at Western Kentucky University in Healthcare Administration program.  She has demonstrated excellent performance in the classroom.  She is a officer in the student American College of Healthcare Executives chapter.  Courtney is described by her professors as a “dedicated student with excellent academic and creative skills,” a “natural leader,” and an “effective communicator.”  After interviewing Courtney, the KHSF Scholarship Committee found her to be bright and articulate and truly worthy of the scholarship.  Congratulations Courtney Jean Carter!