Rene Letourneau
Kaiser Permanente has named Bernard J. Tyson as its new CEO and chairman. Tyson will take the reins from current CEO and chairman George Halvorson when he retires in December 2013.
In a press conference on Tuesday morning, New Jersey Republican Gov. Chris Christie said 91 healthcare facilities throughout the state, including 29 hospitals and 58 long-term care facilities, had reported losing power due to post-tropical storm Sandy.
The number of merger and acquisition transactions in the healthcare industry declined by nearly 10 percent in the third quarter of 2012 compared with the third quarter of 2011, according to a recent report from research and publishing firm Irving Levin Associates. Industry experts, however, do not believe it is a cause for major concern.
On Oct. 18, the Massachusetts Medical Society held its State of the State's Health Care 13th Annual Leadership Forum. After the event, MMS president Richard Aghababian, MD, spoke to Healthcare Finance News Editor Rene Letourneau about the biggest challenges and top-of-mind issues facing Massachusetts' physicians.
The Federal Trade Commission recently held a daylong workshop to examine the ways pet medications are distributed in the U.S. and how the current practices affect consumer choice and price competition. Pet meds are big business -- American consumers spend $7 billion on them annually -- and veterinarians and pharmacists are wrangling for their piece of the pie.
The Affordable Care Act has polarized Republicans and Democrats despite the fact that many voters cannot explain the healthcare reform legislation to any significant degree, said Robert Blendon, ScD, professor of health policy and political analysis at the Harvard School of Public Health during a speech to the Massachusetts Medical Society on Oct. 18.
Containing healthcare costs and improving the quality of care are among the state's top priorities said Massachusetts Democratic Gov. Deval Patrick at the Massachusetts Medical Society's State of the State's Health Care 13th Annual Leadership Forum in Waltham, Mass. on Oct. 18.
Physician practices that create an empowered, deft workforce aligned around a central philosophy have the ability to react and adjust quickly to change and are better prepared to maximize revenue and flourish during tough economic times.
Bestselling author Patrick Lencioni has penned eight books on leadership and organizational health and is the founder and president of San Francisco-based management consulting firm The Table Group. Lencioni will speak at the Medical Group Management Association's annual conference in San Antonio on Oct. 23. He recently discussed his presentation with Healthcare Finance News Editor Rene Letourneau.
Overall U.S. healthcare prices decreased slightly from August to September 2012, falling 0.5 percent, the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.