Prime Healthcare pulls out of deal to save local hospitals (xpost from GD)

[KamaAina]

Their biased headline, not mine.

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Prime-Healthcare-pulls-out-of-deal-to-save-local-6126227.php

Citing Attorney General Kamala Harris’ “unprecedented” list of demands, Prime Healthcare Services pulled out of its deal to buy Daughters of Charity Health System’s six nonprofit Catholic hospitals, including Daly City’s Seton Medical Center.

“Unfortunately, the conditions placed on the sale by the California attorney general are so burdensome and restrictive that it would be impossible for Prime Healthcare — or any buyer — to make the changes needed to operate and save these hospitals,” Prime Healthcare Chairman Dr. Prem Reddy said in a statement Tuesday....

Harris approved the deal Feb. 20, listing a string of conditions in a 78-page document that included requiring Prime to keep the hospitals open at least 10 years, maintain the Catholic hospitals’ charity care programs, to accept Medi-Cal for the poor and to honor all pension obligations for the system’s 17,000 current and retired employees.

“The sheer number of conditions — more than 300 — is unheard of in California, or anywhere else in the United States,” said Troy Schell, Prime’s general counsel, in a statement. The company estimated the hospitals would lose nearly $3 billion over the 10 years with those conditions.

For those of you just joining us, Prime is a union-busting, bargain-basement outfit that was planning to turn the hospitals into the medical version of Motel 6, or as one commenter suggested, shut them down one by one and take the tax writeoff. And will someone please explain to me how any healthcare provider can be losing that much money in our bloated system?

[misterhighwasted]

1. Good. Then its time for another health system to step in their place.

As they stick their noses in the air & exit the door something better will emerge.