ACQUISITIONS, MERGERS, AND CLOSURES ARE FOR PROFIT BUT NOT GOOD FOR YOUR HEALTH
ACQUISITIONS, MERGERS AND CLOSURES
It started nationally years ago, but now it is in Oregon with a bang. First, Trillium, a coordinated care organization in Lane County for some of Oregon’s one million-plus Medicaid folks, was bought by Centene, a nationwide for profit insurance company. Then PeaceHealth closed its birthing center. Then three years ago OPTUM/United Health Insurance bought out Oregon Medical Group. Last December PeaceHealth closed Eugene’s only emergency hospital, with only three months’ notice to the community. Recently, OPTUM/United Health Insurance were approved by the Oregon Health Authority to buy Corvallis Clinic.
Now with doctors and providers leaving, Oregon Medical Group patients are being given the boot. OMG will no longer care for them. They need to seek another health provider. See Oregonlive.com March 27 article. OMG Southtowne clinic is closing.
Your health care needs are being bought by larger and larger corporations. Health care is being corporatized. This means their profit is the first priority, your health is a means for that profit, and as such it is treated as a commodity. Studies have shown that with each acquisition, merger or closure, services decrease, i.e. longer wait times, less time with the provider, more insurance denials and the costs increases.
Many of us are involved in creating a new pathway for healthcare. We can no longer trust the corporations to provide our healthcare needs. I urge you all to visit our site Hcao.org and be part of the movement for a simpler, comprehensive, universal health care program.
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