Healthcare, and everything associated with it, is arguably one of the more important issues facing the American people today. It is a social and an economic issue—the fewer people who have coverage the more the cost to the “system” as a whole. Whether you are in support of so-called “Obamacare,” or want things to change in a different way, it’s pretty clear there are many flaws in the current system.
And constantly, every day, it seems, there is a law that changes or hospital consolidation which changes the way healthcare is delivered.
The North Bay Business Journal recently published a story on Covered California, the “state’s online health exchange established under the Affordable Care Act,” written by Dan Verel, health care reporter at the Business Journal.
Verel’s story includes information about the local impact of this rollout of the Affordable Care Act. The Press Democrat also published a story by Judy Lin of the Associated Press which didn’t include any localized information or analysis on the topic.
Also in healthcare news, and related to the Affordable Care Act, last month Alexander Valley Regional Medical Center applied to become a federally qualified health center, which, according to a Business Journal story, “if approved, would allow Sonoma County’s only certified rural health clinic to receive significantly better reimbursement rates and more operating revenue.”
Also of note, Verihealth, Petaluma-based ambulance company, was recently acquired by Falck, a global ambulance company based in Denmark. Falk USA CEO Boo Heffner was quoted as saying of Verihealth: “We view them as a springboard, if you will, into larger markets in Northern California.”
It’s also yet another sign of the consolidation taking place in the health care sector, spurred largely by the Affordable Care Act and the economic realities that are impacting companies — from physician groups to blood banks to ambulance companies — large and small, wrote Verel./blockquote>
To me, these stories reek of relevancy to the local community. The Associated Press wire service is certainly a fine place to pick up news, but with something as big as a roll-out of healthcare reform, it seems logical and apt to get a local angle on the story. The Business Journal’s audience is comprised mostly of business leaders. I am sure the rest of the community would benefit from broader coverage by the other guys in town.
