Author Archives: henrykotula

Most seniors aren’t vaccinated yet

Posted on by • Posted in Coronavirus, Coronavirus Mutation, Vaccine, Vaccine Distribution, Vulnerable Populations • Leave a comment
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Most seniors have not gotten a COVID-19 vaccine yet, according to an analysis from the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Why it matters: There’s simply not enough vaccine available right now to take on every priority, Axios’ Marisa Fernandez writes.

  • Even as states eye the next phase of the process and additional high-risk groups clamor for access, there’s still a long way to go just in protecting most vulnerable.

By the numbers: In the first month of vaccinations, about 29% of recipients were 65 or older, per KFF.

  • The first round of vaccines was directed primarily at health care workers and the residents of long-term care facilities.

Where it stands: West Virginia has vaccinated the most seniors at 34%, thanks to a focused effort in nursing homes.

  • Nine states — West Virginia, North Carolina, Florida, Mississippi, Delaware, Texas, Michigan, New Jersey, and Wisconsin and Washington, D.C. — report vaccinating at least 20% of seniors.

Yes, but: Demographic data aren’t available in some states and cities, which will make it hard to track how well the U.S. is addressing high-risk groups as more people become eligible.

Where the pandemic has been deadliest

Posted on by • Posted in Asymptomatic Transmission, Coronavirus, Coronavirus Mutation, Crisis, Crisis Management, Infection Control, Infection Control Plan, Infectious Virus, Mortality, National Strategy, Out of Control, Pandemic, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), Public Health, Public Opinion, Public Perception, Public Safety, Public Trust, Scientists, Social Distancing, Vaccine, Vaccine Distribution • Leave a comment
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Image result for Ratio of COVID-19 deaths to population Map: Michelle McGhee and Andrew Witherspoon/Axios

In the seven states hit hardest by the pandemic, more than 1 in every 500 residents have died from the coronavirus.

Why it matters: The staggering death toll speaks to America’s failure to control the virus.

Details: In New Jersey, which has the highest death rate in the nation, 1 out of every 406 residents has died from the virus. In neighboring New York, 1 out of every 437 people has died.

  • In Mississippi, 1 out of every 477 people has died. And in South Dakota, which was slammed in the fall, 1 of every 489 people has died.

States in the middle of the pack have seen a death rate of around 1 in 800 dead.

  • California, which has generally suffered severe regional outbreaks that don’t span the entire state, has a death rate of 1 in 899.
  • Vermont had the lowest death rate, at 1 of every 3,436 residents.

The bottom line: Americans will keep dying as vaccinations ramp up, and more transmissible variants of the coronavirus could cause the outbreak to get worse before it gets better.

  • Experts also say it’s time to start preparing for the next pandemic — which could be deadlier.

CEO gets 15 years in prison for $150M healthcare fraud

Posted on by • Posted in Bribes, CEO, Dept of Justice (DOJ), False Claims Act, Falsifying Medical Records, Fraud, Fraud and Abuse, Money Laundering, Obstruction of Justice, Physician, Prison Sentence, Restitution, Rev Cycle Management, Revenue Cycle • Leave a comment
https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/legal-regulatory-issues/ceo-gets-15-years-in-prison-for-150m-healthcare-fraud.html?origin=CEOE&utm_source=CEOE&utm_medium=email&utm_content=newsletter&oly_enc_id=2893H2397267F7G
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The CEO of a group of Texas-based hospice and home health companies was sentenced Feb. 3 to 15 years in prison for his role in a $150 million healthcare fraud and money laundering scheme, according to the Department of Justice. 

Henry McInnis was sentenced more than a year after he was convicted of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, obstruction of justice and healthcare fraud. 

From 2009 to 2018, Mr. McInnis and others submitted more than $150 million in false and fraudulent claims for healthcare services. The claims were submitted through Merida Group, a hospice company with dozens of locations in Texas. 

Mr. McInnis was CEO of Merida. He had no medical training but acted as the director of nursing for the company. He also enforced a companywide practice of falsifying medical records to conceal the scheme and ordered employees to change medical records to make it appear patients were terminally ill. 

Mr. McInnis also paid bribes to physicians to certify unqualified patients for home health and hospice. 

Mr. McInnis was sentenced less than two months after the owner of Merida Group, Rodney Mesquias, was sentenced to 20 years in prison and ordered to pay $120 million in restitution. 

Tower Health to cut pay for executives, managers

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Tower Health said it is cutting salaries of executives and managers amid financial losses linked to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The West Reading, Pa.-based health system has struggled financially in the last two fiscal years. It recorded an operating loss of $378.2 million in fiscal year 2020, as well as an operating deficit of $178.8 million the year prior. And last November, the health system said it would consider selling six of its Philadelphia-area hospitals, including those it has purchased since 2017 from Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems, as part of a financial turnaround plan.

To help offset the financial damage, about 400 Tower Health executives and managers will have their pay cut, beginning in their Feb. 19 paychecks, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer, which cites a letter CEO Clint Matthews wrote to staff. Executives will have their pay cut by 15 percent, and directors, senior directors and associate vice presidents will have their pay cut by 10 percent.

In a statement shared with Becker’s on Feb. 8, the health system said it “is undertaking several initiatives as part of a coordinated plan to improve operations, strengthen care delivery and address the ongoing financial impact of COVID-19.”

“These actions include compensation reductions for executives and managerial employees, along with operational improvements to reduce costs and enhance revenue,” according to the Tower Health statement.

The salary cuts will be in effect until June 30, and do not affect front-line clinical or support staff, who received merit increases in January.

Tower Health projects cost savings of about $11.6 million because of the pay cuts.  

“Reducing management compensation is a difficult but necessary decision that will stabilize and strengthen our financial performance as we continue to meet the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as our ongoing mission of providing compassionate, accessible, high-quality, cost-effective healthcare to our communities,” the health system said.

What happens after a year without the flu?

Posted on by • Posted in Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), Clinical Research, Coronavirus, Coronavirus Mutation, Flu Season, Flu Shot, Flu Transmission, Flu-Related Hospitalizations, Infection Control, Infection Control Plan, Infectious Virus, Pandemic, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), Population Health, Public Health, Public Schools, RNA, Social Distancing, Twindemic, Vulnerable Populations • Leave a comment

https://mailchi.mp/85f08f5211a4/the-weekly-gist-february-5-2021?e=d1e747d2d8

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Doctors and scientists have been relieved that the dreaded “twindemic”—the usual winter spike of seasonal influenza superimposed on the COVID pandemic—did not materialize.

In fact, flu cases are at one of the lowest levels ever recorded, with just 155 flu-related hospitalizations this season (compared to over 490K in 2019). A new piece in the Atlantic looks at the long-term ramifications of a year without the flu. 

Public health measures like masking and handwashing have surely lowered flu transmission, but scientists remain uncertain why flu cases have flatlined as COVID-19, which spreads via the same mechanisms, surged.

Children are a much greater vector for influenza, and reduced mingling in schools and childcare likely slowed spread. Perhaps the shutdown in travel slowed the viruses’ ability to hop a ride from continent to continent, and the cancellation of gatherings further dampened transmission.

Nor are scientists sure what to expect next year. Optimists hope that record-low levels of flu could take a strain out of circulation. But others warn that flu could return with a vengeance, as the virus continues to mutate while population immunity declines. 

Researchers developing next year’s vaccines, meanwhile, face a lack of data on what strains and mutations to target—although many hope the mRNA technologies that proved effective for COVID will enable more agile flu vaccine development in the future. 

Regardless, renewed vigilance in flu prevention and vaccination next fall will be essential, as a COVID-fatigued population will be inclined to breathe a sigh of relief as the current pandemic comes under control.