The killing of United Health CEO Brian Thompson triggered an uproar from the many Americans frustrated with the failures of our health care system. In a recent op-ed in the Boston Globe, Lown president Dr. Vikas Saini shares his take on this important moment and the changes we need to build a radically better health […]
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Register now for the 2024 Shkreli Awards, hosted on January 7, 2025 at 1pm
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Physicians and medical students of the AMA recently voted in favor of stronger financial assistance standards. Why are stronger standards needed, and how could this help relieve medical debt for patients?
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Safety net hospitals across the country are facing downgraded services and closures. Meanwhile, more profitable hospitals within the same systems are expanding and growing bigger than ever. Where is this pattern showing up, and how does it impact patients?
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Register now for the webinar "Unnecessary Back Surgery: Older Americans put at risk while Billions in Medicare funds wasted" on November 14, 2024.
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Our key takeaways from the recent conference on hospital tax exemptions and community benefit spending, cohosted by the Lown Institute and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
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A new medical debt relief effort in North Carolina focuses on the impact of changes to financial assistance rather than solely forgiving old medical debt. Here's how they did it..
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Nonprofit hospitals are under scrutiny for paying executives millions while cutting jobs and reducing community investment. We examined the top ten highest-paid CEOs from 2021, according to the Lown Hospitals Index, to find out more.
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Following interest from policymakers on hospital community benefit spending, the IRS announced it will audit 35 hospitals with a focus on community benefit compliance. Here's what you need to know
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Hospitals in the U.S. are continuing to land in hot water for excessive spending on CEO pay and other extravagances at the same time as they face financial challenges and lay off hundreds.
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Could AI and other machine learning help ameliorate our nation’s medical debt crisis—or will it make the problem worse? It all depends on how hospitals use these tools, write Kelsey Chalmers, PhD, our own Director of Research, Data Science at the Lown Institute, and Christopher W. Goodman, MD, Clinical Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine, in a recent JAMA Internal Medicine viewpoint.
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UnitedHealth Group, the nation’s largest health care company, is under fire for allegedly encouraging clinicians to overdiagnose peripheral artery disease in their Medicare Advantage patients to inflate profits. What does Lown data have to say about this situation?
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While Harris and Walz have challenged corporate power, politicians do so only because voters are pushing for it, cautioned Vikas Saini, president of the Lown Institute, a health-care think tank.
“The health-care corporations now are mega-regional players. They have huge clout. It would really take much more than a single politician,” Saini said. “It’s going to take a broader movement in the country. … Maybe we’ll get there as there is a lot of pain.”
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340B is more than a big pile of money. The program is a band-aid covering up huge problems with our health system that can no longer be ignored. The 340B drug discount program is a hugely important policy issue for hospitals and drug companies, but the most of the rest of us have never heard of it or barely understand it. Why is pharma and the hospital industry getting so worked up about 340B, and how does any of this matter? Here’s what you need to know about a growing policy battle…
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Here's how seven health care systems currently or recently owned by private equity firms performed on outcomes, value, and equity on the Lown Index...
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St. Luke’s University Health Network has been recognized by the Lown Institute as one of the most socially responsible hospitals in America, receiving ‘A’ grades in equity, value and outcomes on the 2024-25 Lown Institute Hospitals Index.
Out of more than 3,500 hospitals measured by Lown, only 5% achieved honor roll status, with St. Luke’s ranking among this select group of high performers.
“Great care is only great if everyone can access it,” said Vikas Saini, MD, president of the Lown Institute. “We need hospitals that are not only leaders in clinical care, but also strong community partners-and the hospitals at the top of our list are showing the way.”
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Peconic Bay Medical Center has received accolades statewide: PBMC has been recognized as the most socially responsible hospital in New York State by the
Lown Institute Hospital Index. According to the report, PBMC was ranked first out of 128 statewide for social responsibility, and 79 out of 2,758 nationally.
Brattleboro Memorial Hospital (BMH) has been cited as Vermont’s most socially responsible acute care hospital by the Lown Institute, a Massachusetts-based non-partisan healthcare think tank.
The distinction is based on an evaluation of more than 3,500 U.S. hospitals using more than 50 metrics in categories such as health equity, value of care, and patient outcomes. Results are based on data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the Internal Revenue Service, and other sources.
“We are thrilled that our efforts to promote social responsibility are making a difference in our community, and that they are being quantified and recognized on a national level. Being recognized as a leader in Vermont is especially rewarding, knowing how incredibly socially responsible all hospitals in Vermont are!” said Christopher Dougherty, BMH’s President and CEO, in a statement.
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Some hospitals in the same cities have very different policies for large bill assistance. Here are a few examples from the recently released Lown Institute data set.
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UCHealth is proud to be named one of the nation’s most socially responsible health care systems by the Lown Institute. The 2024-25 Lown Institute Hospitals Index released earlier this week ranks UCHealth No. 2 nationwide according to the institute’s analysis of health equity, value of care and patient outcomes.
“UCHealth is committed to improving the lives of our patients and building healthier communities across the state,” said Elizabeth Concordia, UCHealth president and CEO. “We are pleased to be recognized by the Lown Institute as one of the nation’s most socially responsible health care systems. This recognition is a compliment for our staff and providers who work hard every day to provide the very best care to our patients.”
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