![]() In addition, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island was beset by a scandal before we began Health Care Renewal (look here), involving allegations of excess compensation given to and conflicts of interest affecting its CEO.īlue Cross Blue Shield of RI: Executive Compensation, Budget and Taxes Given that we have frequently discussed how self-interested, over-compensated executives may fail to uphold, or may even undermine their health care organizations' missions, this seemed like a narrative primed for further discussion on Health Care Renewal. ![]() Instead, they issued their response: Terminate Landmark Medical Center. Blue Cross refused to even discuss the proposal. Steward, trying to be helpful, proposed base rates that were 5% below the state median, quality metrics used by the federal government, and a commitment to payment reform. Then, in May of this year, they refused to give Landmark Medical Center in Woonsocket a long-term contract without Steward Health Care participating. And for all that exorbitant spending, they pay absolutely nothing in Rhode Island state taxes. They dish out million each year in executive salaries. They invested a small fortune on their opulent corporate offices in Providence. WHAT KIND OF CHARITABLE ORGANIZATION SPENDS $120 MILLION ON ITS HEADQUARTERSīUT DENIES SERVICES TO ITS POOREST COMMUNITIES?īlue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island is designated as a "charitable organization." But they certainly don't spend like one. One advertisement that has run at least three times, by my count, includes the following text: Steward Health Care has run a series of full-page advertisements in the Providence Journal. This difficult negotiation prompted Steward Health Care to make the discussion more public. The negotiations have not been going well, so RI BCBS notified its policy-holders that it is possible Landmark will not be in its network in the future. Meanwhile, Landmark has been in negotiations with Rhode Island Blue Cross Blue Shield, the largest RI health insurance company. It is now in the process of being acquired by Steward Health Care, a regional hospital system based in Massachusetts (summarized here and here). It has been in financial difficulty, and hence management negotiated a buyout while in receivership a buyout was negotiated. Landmark Medical Center is a small health care system in northern Rhode Island. An advertising campaign by the larger hospital system that is set to absorb our local one provides lessons on how important health care policy issues are publicly discussed. Learn more about how remote EHR implementations have enabled MEDITECH organizations to go LIVE safely during this pandemic.Negotiations between a local RI hospital system and the largest RI health insurer have now become very public. This decision was a part of Steward’s “One Platform” strategy to bring all 34 of its hospitals under a single EHR, replacing their legacy vendor systems. ![]() In January 2020, Steward extended its 20-year partnership with MEDITECH when it signed to implement the Expanse EHR in the 18 sites. Steward’s successful remote implementations were due in large part to the agile, cross-divisional, and collaborative process developed with MEDITECH, which included establishing a Virtual Command Center, a 24/7 bridge line to Steward Corporate, and a MEDITECH on-site executive sponsor to oversee the LIVE. Following implementation, subsets of claims were dropped within four days of go-LIVE, enabling Steward to reach standard auto claim creation with a four-day hold within six days. MEDITECH’s Revenue Cycle Solution, which was a major attractor for Steward, enabled the organization to quickly begin processing claims after go-LIVE. “I am pleased with our team for successfully adapting to a virtual implementation, to bring our community the EHR technology needed to navigate care during these difficult times.” “Steward is committed to delivering high quality care to patients, and keeping them safe during the pandemic,” said David Colarusso, Chief Information Officer at Steward Health Care. Content is further customized at a regional level in line with Steward’s corporate governance. The hospitals in each region share a single MEDITECH EHR, which is built upon standard content and best practices provided through Steward Corporate to ensure consistent quality standards across all Steward sites and minimize the build time. Subsequent go-LIVEs moved forward between October and November 15th. Steward successfully brought their Arizona sites LIVE on September 1st - just 12 months after their contract signing. Steward Health Care’s relationship with MEDITECH has strengthened despite the challenges of the coronavirus, as the two organizations worked together this fall to virtually deploy MEDITECH Expanse across 18 Steward facilities located in Arizona, Utah, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Texas.
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