Three hospitals in Vermont and New Hampshire plan to outsource most of their lab work to Lebanon, N.H.-based Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center as part of a cost-saving pilot program, according to a Valley News report.
The three hospitals expect to save hundreds of thousands of dollars each from the program. Most of the cost savings from the program will come from money saved that would otherwise be spent on lab equipment and materials, but each of the three hospitals — Mt. Ascutney Hospital in Windsor, Vt., Valley Regional Hospital in Claremont, N.H., and New London (N.H.) Hospital — may lay off or cut the hours of some staff members, according to the report.
The hospitals will maintain their own surgical pathology labs and perform "stat" lab work that needs to be done quickly, according to the report. Otherwise, the labs will be shipped to DHMC.
All three of the hospitals have a management services agreement with DHMC.
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