University of Louisville President Neeli Bendapudi says there is no immediate risk of Jewish Hospital closing, in the wake of the university's decision not to buy the money-losing but medically significant facility. But there is much worry in the Louisville region about its future.
CommonSpirit Health, formerly known as Catholic Health Initiatives, have been trying to sell Jewish and eight other facilities under the KentuckyOne Health brand for two and a half years. U of L said it could not find a suitable partner to help fund the acquisition and couldn't afford to do it alone.
Bendapudi said June 13 that there is also no immediate plan to reduce the services that the university provides through Jewish, including a wide range of care provided by U of L physicians, including its cardiology and transplant services, and training of residents from the university's medical school. She added that the university must receive at least 90 days' notice before its contracts with KentuckyOne can be terminated.
KentuckyOne spokeswoman Lannette VandeToil said there were no current plans to close Jewish or any other facilities, adding that two other organizations have been in ongoing talks with KentuckyOne Health about a possible deal: hedge fund BlueMountain Capital Management an anonymous entity, Morgan Watkins reports for the Louisville Courier Journal.
Despite all of these assurances, local health experts worry about the future of Jewish Hospital and the tens of thousands of patients that it cares for, Boris Ladwig reports for Insider Louisville.
Ladwig reports that Jewish and Sts. Mary & Elizabeth hospitals have been incurring operating losses of more than $1 million per week.
Dr. Peter Hasselbacher, emeritus professor of medicine at U of L, told Ladwig that he was disappointed in the university's decision to walk away, but not surprised. He added that he didn't see "any signs that instill confidence in the facility's future," Ladwig writes.
"All I see are warning signs that the community should be prepared to take up the slack to take up the medical needs of urban Louisville," he told Ladwig. "I'd love to be more optimistic, but I can't be. I see us slowly circling the [drain]."
Hasselbacher also expressed his concern about what would happen to the tens of thousands of patients that Jewish Hospital cares for if it were to close or reduce its services, many of them without insurance or covered by the federal government, which Ladwig notes generally pays hospitals less than it costs to provide the care. Hasselbacher notes that the financial issues that come with taking care of this population will follow them to other hospitals in the area if Jewish were to close.
"I'm seeing challenges . . . to the city and state that they are going to be very reluctant to" address, Hasselbacher told Ladwig, who reports: "According to recent filings, Jewish and Sts. Mary & Elizabeth hospitals have a combined 78,000 annual emergency-room visits, compared to 65,000 at nearby University Hospital. Bendapudi said University is “at capacity” and Norton Healthcare’s downtown hospital, too, sometimes has to divert patients to other facilities."
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| Courier Journal photo |
Bendapudi said June 13 that there is also no immediate plan to reduce the services that the university provides through Jewish, including a wide range of care provided by U of L physicians, including its cardiology and transplant services, and training of residents from the university's medical school. She added that the university must receive at least 90 days' notice before its contracts with KentuckyOne can be terminated.
KentuckyOne spokeswoman Lannette VandeToil said there were no current plans to close Jewish or any other facilities, adding that two other organizations have been in ongoing talks with KentuckyOne Health about a possible deal: hedge fund BlueMountain Capital Management an anonymous entity, Morgan Watkins reports for the Louisville Courier Journal.
Despite all of these assurances, local health experts worry about the future of Jewish Hospital and the tens of thousands of patients that it cares for, Boris Ladwig reports for Insider Louisville.
Ladwig reports that Jewish and Sts. Mary & Elizabeth hospitals have been incurring operating losses of more than $1 million per week.
Dr. Peter Hasselbacher, emeritus professor of medicine at U of L, told Ladwig that he was disappointed in the university's decision to walk away, but not surprised. He added that he didn't see "any signs that instill confidence in the facility's future," Ladwig writes.
"All I see are warning signs that the community should be prepared to take up the slack to take up the medical needs of urban Louisville," he told Ladwig. "I'd love to be more optimistic, but I can't be. I see us slowly circling the [drain]."
Hasselbacher also expressed his concern about what would happen to the tens of thousands of patients that Jewish Hospital cares for if it were to close or reduce its services, many of them without insurance or covered by the federal government, which Ladwig notes generally pays hospitals less than it costs to provide the care. Hasselbacher notes that the financial issues that come with taking care of this population will follow them to other hospitals in the area if Jewish were to close.
"I'm seeing challenges . . . to the city and state that they are going to be very reluctant to" address, Hasselbacher told Ladwig, who reports: "According to recent filings, Jewish and Sts. Mary & Elizabeth hospitals have a combined 78,000 annual emergency-room visits, compared to 65,000 at nearby University Hospital. Bendapudi said University is “at capacity” and Norton Healthcare’s downtown hospital, too, sometimes has to divert patients to other facilities."
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