AUGUSTA (AP) — A survey is giving Maine’s rural hospitals high marks. Nine of 22 hospitals on the Leapfrog Group’s 2013 Top Rural Hospitals list released this week were in Maine. All told, more than 200 rural hospitals nationwide were part of the survey. The Top Hospitals designation recognizes hospitals that prevent medical errors, reduce […]
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Posted inBusiness, sj-web
Ellsworth hospital plans layoffs, budget cuts
ELLSWORTH — Maine Coast Memorial Hospital told its employees this week that it will have to cut its annual budget by about $3 million, which will result in some layoffs. A look at the first quarter of this fiscal year showed an operating loss of $635,000, hospital CEO Charlie Therrien said. He attributed the loss […]
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Posted inMaine
Maine solicits bids for state’s wholesale liquor contract
AUGUSTA — The state’s wholesale liquor business is up for grabs to the lowest bidder. The contract to administer and provide trade marketing for the state’s hard liquor business could be worth more than half a billion dollars over the 10-year contract. The state is looking for a company that will share more of the […]
Posted inOur View, sj-web
Glad to get that big debt off our backs
All Mainers should stand a bit taller today knowing we have finally paid off some big debts we have been lugging around for a long time. Gov. Paul LePage visited Central Maine Medical Center on Wednesday to deliver an oversized Publishers Clearing House-style check for $43.4 million. There should be no doubt that the governor […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
LePage to visit CMMC at 2 p.m. today to pay MaineCare debt
LEWISTON — Gov. Paul LePage will visit Central Maine Medical Center at 2 p.m. Wednesday to deliver the news that the state is making good on a $183 million debt it has owed the state’s 39 hospitals beginning in 2009. The state payment for past services provided under MaineCare, the state’s Medicaid system, will trigger […]
Posted inMaine
Maine Democrats and LePage renew debate over Medicaid expansion
AUGUSTA — Leaders in the Legislature’s Democratic majority renewed calls Tuesday to expand the MaineCare system to cover an additional 70,000 people, including childless adults and veterans who have non-service-related medical issues not covered by the Veterans Affairs Administration. House Speaker Mark Eves, D-North Berwick, disputed Republican claims that accepting federal funds under the Affordable […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Maine hospitals awaiting nearly $500M from state but still seeing higher taxes, lower returns
PORTLAND — Hospitals this month will feel relief when they receive nearly $500 million from the state, but the payments don’t provide a remedy for higher taxes that hospitals are paying and lower reimbursements they’re receiving for medical services, hospital officials say. Half a billion dollars sounds like a lot of money and hospitals are […]
Posted inMaine
State sells bonds to pay off $183 million in MaineCare hospital debt
AUGUSTA — A bond was sold Tuesday to pay off $183.5 million in state debt for services provided by hospitals under MaineCare, the state’s Medicaid system, Gov. Paul LePage said. The payment will trigger more than $300 million in federal matching funds. “With the sale of the liquor revenue bond, Maine hospitals are now just […]
Posted inBusiness, sj-web
Maine Medical Center announces 50 layoffs, 175 position cuts, other reductions
PORTLAND — Maine Medical Center on Tuesday afternoon announced a slate of personnel and payroll cuts, including the elimination of 175 positions, layoffs of 50 employees and 12.5 percent reductions in compensation for top hospital administrators. “This is a difficult day that is unfortunate, but necessary for creating the future that our patients and employees […]
Posted inBusiness, Maine
Maine hospitals face Medicare penalties for readmissions
List of penalties imposed on Maine hospitals A dozen Maine hospitals face Medicare penalties in round two of the federal government’s push to lower the number of patients who wind up back in the hospital within a month of being discharged. Compared to other states, Maine’s hospitals ranked near the top, at seventh nationally by […]