JHC By the Numbers

4 — Over the past 11 years, health care premium inflation has risen nearly four times as fast as the rest of the economy, says Brian Klepper in a column for Kaiser Health News. Health care costs nearly double those in other developed nations have put U.S. corporations at a severe competitive disadvantage in the global marketplace. His column covers Fixing America’s Health Care Reimbursement System

66 – Percentage of physicians in a Texas Medical Association who said they accepted all Medicare patients, while 16 percent declined them and 18 percent limited acceptance of them. The number of doctors who accept all new Medicaid patients is even lower. Only 42 percent of physicians accept all new Medicaid patients.

3 — Three Michigan hospital systems — Ford, Dearborn’s Oakwood Healthcare and Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids — post average prices for common tests and procedures, from X-rays to back surgery. Ford and Oakwood have expanded financial counseling programs and give their best discounts to uninsured customers, as do a growing number of other hospitals. 

73 — A survey conducted by Health Facilities Management magazine and the American Society for Healthcare Engineering (ASHE) (Chicago, IL) found that hospitals and health systems in the United States are focusing more on renovation or expansion than new construction. Renovation or expansion accounted for 73 percent of construction projects at hospitals responding to the survey. A little over 26 percent of respondents reported that their organizations have building projects currently under construction. About 15 percent of this total involved new construction, 11.6 percent involved replacement facilities and the remainder covered expansion and renovation. Hospitals are also focusing on a greater use of green construction. The survey also found a continuing trend to add features that satisfy patients and families while still providing high quality care, such as wireless technologies, individual room temperature controls, and educational systems.