May 8, 2023
Providers | Tea Leaves
  • California lawmakers have fast-tracked legislation to loan out $150 million to hospitals across the state struggling to stay open with promises to provide further support when finalizing the state’s budget next month. The bill, passed last week in California’s senate and assembly, would establish a Distressed Hospital Loan Program through January 1, 2032. The program would provide interest-free loans to nonprofit and public hospitals “in significant financial distress,” as well as to “governmental entities representing a closed hospital to prevent the closure or facilitate the reopening of a closed hospital.” (Article here)
  • Former Federal Trade Commission (FTC) staffers say that a recently proposed noncompete ban could apply to nonprofit hospitals. The FTC in January proposed a sweeping ban on noncompete clauses, which many health care organizations use to prevent former employees from working for local competitors for a set period following their departure. Since the announcement, health care lawyers and industry observers have expressed uncertainty about whether the nearly 60 percent of short-term, non-government, acute-care hospitals classified as nonprofit would be subject to the proposed rule. A spokesperson for the commission declined to comment on whether the noncompete provision ban would apply to nonprofit hospitals. (Article here)
  • A Modern Healthcare article discusses how health system governing bodies seeking to share decision-making power with community members can look to lessons learned by leaders of federally qualified health centers, who must overcome hurdles to participation when populating their boards with patients. By law, more than half of FQHCs’ board members must actively receive care from them. Such community input can lead to better patient services and increased market share, according to some experts. The article discusses other benefits of community board participation and highlights some examples of organizations that have seen success with the model. (Article here)