Newman Regional Health Chief Executive Officer Bob Wright expects a federal mandate on full COVID-19 vaccinations for healthcare facilities and others will start by mid-October, and he’s worried about the impact on the hospital’s staff roster — which is already thin.
Wright says the terms of the federal mandate give the hospital almost no wiggle room when it comes to staffers who won’t get vaccinated.
What does the hospital stand to lose if its staff isn’t fully vaccinated? As much as over $30 million per year in federal reimbursements through Medicare and Medicaid.
The federal mandate, announced in early September, calls for full vaccinations for federal workers, contractors, businesses with at least 100 employees and healthcare facilities receiving federal funds or else, in the case of healthcare facilities, the funding goes away.
Wright’s comments come as the hospital’s patient volume is essentially back to pre-COVID levels, but he adds coronavirus is still having a notable impact on patient numbers at a time when the hospital — like others — is struggling to keep a full staff roster. The hospital has added almost 15 contract staff to help with the current situation, and Wright is hoping it won’t have to add more once the mandate kicks in.
There was good news for the hospital during its monthly Board of Trustees meeting Wednesday. The board approved over $600,000 in new equipment for the Jones Breast Care Center, including mammography equipment, bone densitometry, ultrasound and other equipment. The current equipment is largely original to the Breast Care Center, which opened almost a decade ago. The hospital received $350,000 of its $380,000 request for funding through Lyon County and is using those funds as seed money for grants to finish the purchase.
The hospital is getting ready for its ribbon-cutting and open house for Newman Therapy Services, which will start at 4:30 pm Thursday at the hospital’s former emergency room space in the southeast corner of the building.
