Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1187260
50 HEALTHCARE NEWS CHS' shrinking hospital portfolio: 12 latest divestitures By Ayla Ellison F ranklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems became the largest for-profit hospital operator in the nation in 2014 when it acquired Naples, Fla.-based Health Management Associates. Now, the company is selling off hospitals to pay down its debt. As part of a turnaround plan put into place in 2016 to improve its finances and reduce its heavy debt load, CHS di- vested 30 hospitals in 2017. With the help of proceeds from the hospital sales, CHS brought down its long-term debt load from $14.8 billion at the end of 2016 to $13.9 billion at the end of 2017. To further reduce its debt, CHS intends to sell another group of hospitals with combined revenue of $2 billion. e company has made progress toward that goal. In 2018, CHS completed 11 hospital divestitures and permanently closed three hospitals. e company had divested 12 hospitals by Oct. 1. Here's a breakdown of the hospitals CHS has divested in 2019: Jan. 1: CHS completed the sale of Mary Black Health Sys- tem, a two-hospital system based in Spartanburg, S.C. e company divested 207-bed Mary Black Health System-Spar- tanburg and 125-bed Mary Black Health System-Gaffney (S.C.), as well as their related businesses, to Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System. Jan. 31: A nonprofit run by Bloomfield, N.J.-based Commu- nity Healthcare Associates completed its purchase of Salem, N.J.-based Memorial Hospital of Salem County from CHS. March 1: CHS sold four South Carolina hospitals to Medical University of South Carolina Hospital Authority in Charleston. e transaction included the following hospitals: 82-bed Ches- ter Regional Medical Center; 225-bed Springs Memorial Hospi- tal in Lancaster; 396-bed Carolinas Hospital System in Florence; and 124-bed Carolinas Hospital System-Marion in Mullins. July 31: CHS completed the sale of 167-bed College Sta- tion (Texas) Medical Center to Bryan, Texas-based CHI St. Joseph Health. Aug. 1: CHS sold 245-bed Tennova Healthcare-Lebanon (Tenn.) to Nashville, Tenn.-based Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Sept. 1: CHS sold two Florida hospitals to Altamonte Springs, Fla.-based AdventHealth. e two hospitals includ- ed in the transaction were 193-bed Heart of Florida Regional Medical Center in Davenport and 160-bed Lake Wales (Fla.) Medical Center. Oct. 1: CHS completed the sale of 92-bed Bluefield (W.Va.) Regional Medical Center to Princeton (W.Va.) Community Hospital. n Hospital lays off most employees By Ayla Ellison H askell County Community Hospital in Stigler, Okla., laid off most of its staff Sept. 2. The emergency room is the only part of the hospital that remained open, accord- ing to TV station KJRH. Haskell County Community Hospital is one of several hospitals previously owned by Kansas City, Mo.-based EmpowerHMS that filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this year. Shawnee, Okla.-based Cohesive Healthcare took over management of the hospital, and closed most of the facilities in an effort to control expenses during the bankruptcy process, according to News on 6. Cohesive CEO Godwin Feh told News on 6 that he's optimistic the hospital will come out of the bankruptcy process stronger than ever. Haskell County Community Hospital interim CEO Andrea Randall estimated 70 percent to 75 percent of the hospital's staff was laid off Sept. 2. She said all patients were transferred to other facilities, according to KJRH. With Haskell County Community Hospital mostly shut down, patients will have to travel an hour away to receive care. "For patients that are sometimes elderly that travel to that area for services, it's not only a financial but a physical burden," Ms. Randall told News on 6. n Alabama system pays hackers By Mackenzie Garrity A ll three Tuscaloosa, Ala.-based DCH Health System hospitals are temporarily closed to new patients due to a targeted Oct. 1 ransomware attack. DCH Regional Medical Center, Northport Medical Center and Fayette Medical Center diverted patients to alternative hospi- tals. Staff at the health system continued to treat patients that were already in the hospitals. No plans were made to transfer those patients. Elective procedures and surgical cases Oct. 2 were being conducted as planned. The heath system asked patients to call prior to any visit for tests and other procedures. "We are confident that our downtime procedures will allow us to provide safe and effective care for those patients," said a statement on the DCH Health System website. There was no timeline as to when DCH Regional Medical Center, Northport Medical Center and Fayette Medical Center expect to stop rerouting patients. The health system worked with federal authorities and its IT staff, vendors and consultants to restore its system. n