Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1476979
12 CFO / FINANCE Arizona hospital preps for mass layoff By Ayla Ellison S anta Cruz Valley Regional Hospital in Green Valley, Ariz., has issued a layoff notice after TMC Health ended its bid to buy the hospital, according to Green Valley News. The hospital issued a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act notice, which gives the hospital's nearly 300 workers at least 60 days notice before a mass layoff or closure. Santa Cruz Valley Regional Hospital issued the notice just days after Tucson, Ariz.-based TMC Health canceled its plan to purchase the hospital, according to the report. Santa Cruz Valley Regional Hospital CEO Steve Harris said June 20 that the hospital is still exploring its options, including a sale. "Out of an abundance of caution, the hospital is preparing a contingency plan for the potential discontinuation of operations in the event this search does not quickly prove fruitful," Mr. Harris said, according to Green Valley News. n Pennsylvania hospital to close By Ayla Ellison B erwick (Pa.) Hospital Center is slated to close within 90 days after its affiliated clinics abruptly shut down last week, Newswatch 16 reported July 26 citing information from the Pennsylvania Department of Health." to "Berwick (Pa.) Hospital Center is slated to close within 90 days after its affiliated clinics abruptly shut down in July, Newswatch 16 reported July 26 citing information from the Pennsylvania Department of Health. The hospital is owned by Fayette Holdings, a private company that bought the 90-bed hospital in 2020. Priyam Sharma, owner of Fayette Holdings, is seeking to close the acute care hospital and then transition it to a freestanding psychiatric facility, the Pennsylvania Department of Health told Newswatch 16. Hospital employees learned about the planned closure from local news reports, SEIU Healthcare PA, a union representing nearly 90 workers at the hospital, said. "We've had serious concerns for the future of our community hospital but we were caught completely off guard by the recent news report announcing the closing of Berwick Hospital," Matthew Yarnell, President of SEIU Healthcare PA, said in a July 27 statement. "We'll be working to get answers to pressing questions and connecting with local stakeholders to discuss finding a way to possibly save our hospital." n $23B in healthcare megadeals this year By Ayla Ellison T wo healthcare megadeals — those valued at $5 billion or more — have been announced this year, according to a PwC report released June 23. Optum's deal to acquire home healthcare provider LHC Group for $170 per share, or about $5.4 billion, is one of the major transactions in the works. UnitedHealth's Optum announced the deal in March. The other megadeal announced this year is the $18 billion merger of Healthcare Trust of America and Healthcare Realty Trust, which would combine the two of the largest holders of medical office buildings, according to the report. Overall, healthcare services deal volume is strong when comparing the 12 months ended May 15 to the year prior, according to PwC. n Vanderbilt University Medical Center plans $500M expansion By Molly Gamble V anderbilt University Medical Center unveiled plans July 25 for its first major addition since 2009 and largest expansion to date: a 15-level inpatient tower slated for completion in 2027. The new tower, to be named the Link Building, will be constructed atop an existing parking structure on the Nashville hospital's campus. The Link Building, depending on its final configuration, will add approximately 180 inpatient beds along with 10 operating rooms, radiology services, multiple specialty clinics, a spacious lobby and new administrative office space. The system notes that VUMC currently operates at more than 90 percent capacity most of the year. Once complete, it will expand VUMC's patient capacity by nearly 25 percent, with the first additional beds becoming available in 2024. The Tennessean reports the project is expected to cost at least $500 million. "Prior to 2020, our health system was already experiencing the need for additional capacity to care for critically ill adult patients," Jeff Balser, MD, PhD, president and CEO for VUMC and dean of Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, said in a system news release. "The unprecedented demand placed on our people and facilities during the pandemic underscored the strategic importance for this new facility." n