Just when 46-bed Ellwood City (Pa.) Hospital thought it couldn't get worse, it did.
The rural facility has had negative margins since 1998. Two years ago it laid off 15 percent of its workforce. In fiscal year 2015 it was hit with a $1.8 million operating loss, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. But to add insult to injury, CMS in December named the Ellwood City Hospital among the eight local hospitals in "the worst performing quartile," and docked reimbursements 1 percent, according to the report. A total of 758 hospitals will have their Medicare payments reduced in 2016 for having the highest rates of hospital-acquired conditions.
CMS based this claim on three incidents at the hospital over a two-year period, according to the report, one due to an unrecorded pressure ulcer sore and two accidental punctures.
Yet the designation was the worst kind of news for the struggling hospital, which needs all the funds it can get. Due to its size, it has had trouble negotiating rates with payers and finding the partners it needs to inject funds into capital improvements and recruitment, according to the report.
"We're looking for a partner. We need to be part of something," Ellwood City Hospital President and CEO Carolyn Izzo told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "We just can't remain independent."
The hospital attempted a partnership four years ago with Butler (Pa.) Health System that fell through, according to the report. But now, with reduced reimbursements and significant operating loss, the hunt for a match has quickened. In the meantime, the hospital has had to dip into funds from its foundation, which is not sustainable, according to the report.
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