Medicare open enrollment began Oct. 15 and is available through Dec. 7. During this time, those with Medicare can use this period to make changes to their plans and coverage options for the year ahead.
Dr. Saravanan Kasturi, medical director of Northwest Endovascular Surgery in Richland, said private practices like his are struggling in part because Medicare reimbursements have not kept up with the cost of providing services, resulting in a loss of many procedures and patients having to instead visit hospitals.
With many patients treated at its hospital and emergency rooms struggling to get in with providers after being discharged, the region’s biggest health care system has established an outpatient clinic to ensure those patients are cared for following that transition.
The program will provide qualifying states with at least $100 million per year for five years but Washington is slated to lose between $30 billion and $50 billion in federal Medicaid funds over the next 10 years, leading to the closure of 14 rural hospitals. The application for the Rural Health Transformation Program is due Nov. 5 with awards expected by the end of the year.
The roughly 300,000 Washingtonians who buy health insurance through the state’s online marketplace are set for a rude awakening as they begin shopping for plans.
Kadlec Regional Medical Center’s therapy services are cutting staff, as the regional hospital in Richland follows staffing reductions made at other Providence facilities in response to financial pressures.
A nonprofit serving youth in crisis in Benton and Franklin counties is consolidating its two Kennewick offices into a new, larger space to better support its staff and the community.
Hospitals, physicians and other health care providers stand to lose tens of billions of dollars in revenue and face billions of dollars in uncompensated care with the expiration of enhanced federal subsidies for health coverage.
