[libertarianPA]

The number of hospitals in the city has dwindled to seven or eight from 42 in 1960

What's changed since 1960? More health choices for the consumer, or more government?

Medicare payments to hospitals averaged 92 cents for every dollar spent providing care in 2005, the most recent figures available, according to the American Hospital Association. Medicaid's reimbursement rate was lower, at 87 cents per dollar.

Obviously it's time to raise taxes so both of these wonderful bureacracies can cover 100% of the cost and take away all responsibility from the consumer.

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

Crime is a part of this too, IMO.

It costs money to treat gunshot wounds and such.

[Anti-Bubba182]

Actually they should close Detroit St. Louis, Philadelphia and Cleveland.

[patton]

What was the population of Detriot in 1960?

What is it now?

[joe fonebone]

hospitals.....farmers....auto companies...if you are so poor at running a business, then you deserve to go out of business....

[rxgalfl]

You forget the malpractice insurance rates which have skyrocketed in the past decades (thanks Edwards!)....

[alloysteel]

The pattern of delivery of health and medical services to consumers (patients) will alter tremendously over the next decade.

Already there are walk-in clinics in Wal-Marts, and urgent-treatment centers that are free-standing apart from hospitals, where what once would have been an emergency-room visit, is now treated as a walk-in. These places are usually not recognized by insurance companies and certainly not by Medicare-Medicaid, because they are on a cash basis (or credit card), giving the urgent care, and sending you back to your personal physican with their recommendations, but their relationship pretty much ends when you leave the premises.

What this amounts to, is the availability of care based on the ability to pay, a most personally responsible manner at which to look at delivery of medical services.

Sure, this urgent care costs a lot when it is called upon. Emergency room care costs a lot too, but this way, the care is rationed only dependent upon your ability to pay. The thing is, they will look at you without sending you through triage first.

After all, what is your time worth?

[denydenydeny]

and it isn't happening in Phoenix, Arizona, where they can't build hospitals fast enough,"

Not true. In Phoenix nearly every hospital is near insolvency because they are required by law to supply free healthcare to illegals.

[pterional]

The pattern is clear. We are growing a third world nation within the inner cities and legally mandated to provide million dollar care for these individuals. The hospital have to close.

[restornu]

[Old Professer]

“The number of hospitals in the city has dwindled to seven or eight from 42 in 1960, said Alan Sager, director of the Health Reform Program at Boston University’s School of Public Health. Hospitals that are larger, have major medical school-affiliated teaching programs and more money in the bank tend to survive.”

Take away the emotion in this statement and you’re left with the business model, a parallel to Wal-Mart, CostCo, etc; this didn’t happen because this generation suddenly became poorer, sicker or blacker, it happened because the hospitals became larger, predatory, more impersonal and isolated.

Only the giants will be left, the fast-fading first-feeders frittering away millions on advertising and fund-raising until the last bolt in the last door is slammed shut.

[goldstategop]

There's the hidden elephant in the room: illegals sucking up medical services and paying nothing. Thanks to EMTALA, hospitals all over America are going bankrupt. And many more will go bankrupt and close their doors in the future if the politicians succeed in foisting amnesty upon the country. That comes with a huge price tag that endangers American lives. We stand duly warned.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[Leftism is Mentally Deranged]

Hospitals are losing money because of the patients who don’t pay and the paying patients who are tired of paying for those who don’t pay.
Liberals want privately-run hospitals to fail so that they can step up and say “we’ll save you, here is a national healthcare system”.

[Dick Vomer]

they need to put a trial lawyer like Edwards in charge of medical care. Lets see what lawyers and bureaucrats can do to "fix" the problem.

What's really neat is that the socialistic democrat strongholds seem to be the areas most affected.

Atlas shrugged..

[Mamzelle]

Rust-belt states (Penn in particular) are known to be anti-doctor. Doctors educated in these states are in a hurry to leave. People want to have their doctors, and eat them, too—else why would they elect crooks like Rendell?

[Myrddin]

Businesses close when people aren't paying their bills. The medical business is no different. Government mandates treatment, but doesn't require patients to pay it back. The medical facility and the taxpayers get ripped off. The only way to stop the financial hemorrhage is to close the business. Playing the "poor black" race card is typical of a leftist journalist. The criteria for closing the hospital is financial. Businesses aren't required to stay in business at a loss.

The same thing is happening to emergency rooms around San Diego. The illegal aliens use them for "free" medical care. They continue to close. San Diego is hardly a poor, urban center. The problem is the same. Hordes of non-paying "customers".

[no dems]

Because roughly 90 percent of its 11,000 annual inpatients are covered under the Medicare or Medicaid public assistance programs, Riverview has struggled economically...

O.K., now; all of you in favor of a National Health Care program raise your hands.