Hospital to break with HCA

Allen County Hospital officially will break the majority of its ties with HCA beginning June 1.
The end of the 10-year relationship means the hospital’s financial well-being will be the responsibility of the county and that hospital employees will be employed by the new Allen County Regional Hospital, not Hospital Corporation of America, which has leased the hospital since November 2002.
The hospital’s chief executive officer, Ron Baker, chief financial officer, Larry Peterson, and chief nursing officer, Patty McGuffin, will remain employees of HCA.
The separation from HCA provides a better delineation of what is the county’s responsibility and what it contracts from HCA. The difference is critical to how the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services reimburses the hospital for its expenses.
“The key element is the definition of what is a ‘related entity,’” said Baker. “If hospital employees were to remain with HCA, the CMS would classify us as being a related entity to HCA and possibly deny us full reimbursement.
“We did this to stabilize the cost structure,” Baker said. “We will now have a better chance for getting paid for what our expenses are.”
A committee will review employees’ benefits under HCA and draw up a new package that will match current benefits, Baker said.

HOSPITAL TRUSTEES met with graphic designers at their meeting Tuesday night to discuss how to best project the hospital’s new facility.
Several ideas were floated that kept close to the hospital’s mission: “Together we provide progressive, compassionate care that promotes wellness, relieves suffering and restores health.”