Profession

L.A. County teaching hospital closing

NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Sept. 3, 2007

Print  |   Email  |   Respond  |   Reprints  |   Like Facebook  |   Share Twitter  |   Tweet Linkedin

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors announced Aug. 15 it will shutter Martin Luther King Jr.-Harbor Hospital -- once known as Martin Luther King Jr./Charles R. Drew Medical Center -- after it failed an unannounced July federal inspection.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services survey team found that the hospital did not meet eight out of 23 accreditation standards. County officials closed the hospital's emergency department Aug. 10 and began shutting down inpatient services. The county has promised to pay up to $16.3 million to nearby private hospitals as they absorb the largely uninsured population the hospital treated. Without the CMS contract, $200 million a year, the county said it no longer could afford to operate the hospital.

King-Harbor failed a CMS inspection in fall 2006, resulting in the loss of federal funding for its 15 residencies and 290 residents. All of the programs closed by July 1.

James L. Kyle II, MD,cq vice president for strategic development at Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Sciencecq, said the school is actively seeking hospitals where it could re-establish up to five resident programs starting in 2010.

Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2007/09/03/prbf0903.htm.

Back to top


ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISE HERE


Featured
Read story

Confronting bias against obese patients

Medical educators are starting to raise awareness about how weight-related stigma can impair patient-physician communication and the treatment of obesity. Read story


Read story

Goodbye

American Medical News is ceasing publication after 55 years of serving physicians by keeping them informed of their rapidly changing profession. Read story


Read story

Policing medical practice employees after work

Doctors can try to regulate staff actions outside the office, but they must watch what they try to stamp out and how they do it. Read story


Read story

Diabetes prevention: Set on a course for lifestyle change

The YMCA's evidence-based program is helping prediabetic patients eat right, get active and lose weight. Read story


Read story

Medicaid's muddled preventive care picture

The health system reform law promises no-cost coverage of a lengthy list of screenings and other prevention services, but some beneficiaries still might miss out. Read story


Read story

How to get tax breaks for your medical practice

Federal, state and local governments offer doctors incentives because practices are recognized as economic engines. But physicians must know how and where to find them. Read story


Read story

Advance pay ACOs: A down payment on Medicare's future

Accountable care organizations that pay doctors up-front bring practice improvements, but it's unclear yet if program actuaries will see a return on investment. Read story


Read story

Physician liability: Your team, your legal risk

When health care team members drop the ball, it's often doctors who end up in court. How can physicians improve such care and avoid risks? Read story

  • Stay informed
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • LinkedIn