Today’s NewsStand

Today’s NewsStand

By Iowa Hospital Association|
|October 27, 2022

Iowa news

Committee cites goals of Nov. 8 Winnebago County EMS levy, surcharge proposal

The Winnebago County EMS Levy Committee and Supervisors Board recently completed a series of informational meetings at locations countywide about its public measure on the Nov. 8 election ballot. The proposed Winnebago County EMS levy and income tax surcharge needs a 60% favorable vote of county residents to pass. It calls for assessment of up to $0.75 per $1,000 property tax valuation and an income tax surcharge of 1.0%. It could generate up to $478,000 annually for the county’s EMS centralized care as well as more options for its advanced care. (Globe Gazette)

After weeks of decline, Iowa’s COVID-19 infection rate increases

The state’s COVID-19 infection rate increased for the first time in more than a month, according to a report from the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services. The state reported 1,915 new confirmed cases for the past week among those who have not been previously infected by the coronavirus. That’s a 27% increase from the previous week. (Iowa Capital Dispatch)

MercyOne Clinton provides neurological care through telehealth

The Clinton community now has expanded access to neurological care through telehealth services from MercyOne Clinton Medical Center. This new service enables patients suffering stroke to be seen quickly by neuroscience experts through remote video. Teleneurological services are available in Clinton through inpatient rounding, where physicians visit patients’ rooms and provide them with remote access to a neurological specialist for an assessment to diagnose, treat or manage conditions affecting the brain. During an emergency, the platform provides quick and easy access to a neurologist to provide efficient and rapid medical care. (Clinton Herald)

National news

Nonprofit hospitals face prolonged labor challenges despite recent respite

Nonprofit hospitals are bracing for a challenging few months as health care and social assistance job vacancies remain high against a backdrop of low unemployment. Health care and social assistance job openings fell for two consecutive months to 7.7% as of August, but the number of openings remains above the highest level recorded before the COVID-19 pandemic. One encouraging sign is the slowly declining number of quits — 2.3% (486,000 quits) in August 2022 compared with a peak of 3.1% (626,000 quits) in November 2021. But quit rates remain high and are on track to exceed last year (Fitch Ratings).

25% of ransomware attacks aimed at health care industry, FBI says

The health care sector has been hit with 25% of ransomware attacks so far in 2022, according to FBI data. The agency cited the Internet Crime Complaint Center data in a joint warning about a hacker gang targeting hospitals. In 2021, the health care and public health sector had the most ransomware reports of any of the 14 critical infrastructure industries, with 148 out of 649, according to IC3. Both the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the White House say they plan to make protecting the health care industry from hackers a priority moving forward. (Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency)

CEOs are leaving their jobs at younger ages

Across all industries, the average age of CEOs who left their roles in the first nine months of the year is four years younger than the year prior, according to a Challenger, Gray and Christmas report. The average age of 56 for the first nine months of 2022 is down from the 2021 average age of 60. This year is shaping up to be the youngest batch of exiting CEOs since global outplacement and business and executive coaching firm Challenger began tracking ages in 2010, with the exception of 2020. Across all industries, 969 CEOs have left their roles in the first nine months of the year, down 2% from the 991 who left their posts through the same time last year. The 82 hospital CEO changes recorded through September is up about 4% compared to the 79 recorded by the same point in 2021. (Becker’s Hospital Review)

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