Laura Dyrda

How will the recent federal budget legislation – the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) – slowly and inevitably undermine rural hospitals? Here is how it will happen. The OBBB over time will significantly reduce the number of individuals receiving Medicaid benefits while simultaneously cutting back on Medicaid reimbursements. Cutting…

More than 100,000 Americans are waiting for organ transplants, and each day, an average of 13 die before a donor becomes available. Despite broad public support for organ donation — surveys suggest nearly 9 in 10 adults are in favor of registering — far fewer people take the step of…

A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to obtain medical records from Boston Children’s Hospital related to gender-affirming care, ruling that the Justice Department’s subpoena was improper and “motivated only by bad faith,” according to court documents obtained by Becker’s. Here are five things to know about the…

Competency tracking is an important part of nursing professional development, used to ensure new hires and experienced staff are meeting skills requirements tied to orientation, annual education and regulatory standards. At Chicago-based Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, tracking nurse competencies once meant navigating a cumbersome paper…

On average, supply costs accounted for 13% of hospitals’ expenses in 2024, according to the American Hospital Association’s annual “Cost of Caring” report released April 30.  In 2024, total hospital expenses grew 5.1%, outpacing the overall inflation rate of 2.9%, according to the report.  “Though expense growth has started to…

South Miami, Fla.-based Larkin Health System has denied rumors that an anesthesiologist who posted a video celebrating the death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk works for the organization. After Kirk was killed Sept. 10 at a Utah university, the woman posted a video to her Instagram account (which has since…

Aurora, Colo.-based UCHealth and Pueblo (Colo.) Community College’s nursing program have teamed up to create the Ascend Career Program to help strengthen the local healthcare workforce. The program offers Pueblo-based UCHealth Parkview Medical Center staff the opportunity to enroll in PCC’s associate degree in nursing program, with UCHealth covering the…

As of Sept. 10, the FDA has approved more than a dozen glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists for diabetes, weight loss, cardiovascular disease and other indications. The approved indications for brand-name GLP-1s: Adlyxin (lixisenatide) Type 2 diabetes in adults Bydureon (exenatide) Type 2 diabetes in patients ages 10 years and older…

A growing number of states are taking action to ensure broad access to COVID-19 vaccines as respiratory virus season approaches. The state-level moves come after the FDA limited approval of updated shots to individuals 65 and older, and those with at least one condition that puts them at high risk…

Eighteen health systems were featured on Fortune magazine and Great Place to Work Institute’s annual “Best Workplaces in Health Care” list. Arlington-based Texas Health Resources ranked as the No. 1 large healthcare employer for the second year in a row.  Fifty total large healthcare employers were recognized. The rankings were…

Danville, Pa.-based Geisinger and Microsoft’s Nuance Communications have agreed to a $5 million settlement over a 2023 data breach that affected 1.2 million patients. Patients sued the organizations in a class-action lawsuit after the data of 1.2 million patients was found on a former Nuance employee’s laptop. The ex-staffer has…

Heart disease and cancer were the leading causes of death in the U.S. in 2024, according to a CDC report published Sept. 10.  The analysis is based on 99.9% of 2024 death records as of June 1, 2025. Here are five things to know from the CDC report: The number…

The Trump administration is moving forward with tighter oversight of Medicaid state-directed payments. CMS issued preliminary guidance on Sept. 9 on implementing the new limits tied to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, offering states additional time to prepare before a final rule is released. Under the guidance, state-directed payments…

A child enrolled in Capside Biotherapeutics’ gene therapy trial for STXBP1 developmental and epileptic encephalopathy has died, prompting the company to pause the study while investigating the death.  The patient was the first participant in the clinical trial. Capside said it is working to determine what happened and has notified…

Landmark Hospital of Cape Girardeau (Mo.), a long-term acute care facility, has shared plans to close “in the coming weeks,” according to a Sept. 10 news release. The hospital has been open since early 2006 and is part of Cape Girardeau-based Landmark Holdings of Florida, which operates six long-term acute…

The American Medical Association is supporting new federal enforcement measures aimed at curbing information blocking, a practice the group says has long impeded patient care and physician efficiency. Here are five things to know: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced Sept. 3 that it will penalize EHR…

Five hospitals and health systems recently posted job listings seeking revenue cycle executive directors. Note: This is not an exhaustive list. Listings were compiled from job-seeker sites. 1. City of Hope, based in Duarte, Calif., seeks an executive director of revenue cycle strategy and automation to work remotely.  2. Kootenai…

Tracy Griffin has been named chief information security officer of Cincinnati-based Bon Secours Mercy Health. Ms. Griffin has served as interim CISO of the 48-hospital system since May, having joined the organization in 2010 as information security audit and compliance manager. She previously worked in information security leadership at hospitals…

The District of Columbia holds the highest ratio of nurses to population, to a significant degree, at 7.14 per 100 residents, while Utah has the lowest, at 1.38, according to a Becker’s analysis. The analysis is based on U.S. Census Bureau state population estimates as of July 1, 2024, and…

Oracle has introduced new AI-powered features in its Fusion Cloud Applications aimed at helping healthcare organizations strengthen supply chain operations. The enhancements include Oracle Fusion Cloud Advanced Inventory Management, which uses artificial intelligence to optimize stock levels, prevent shortages of critical supplies, and automate replenishment tasks. The system also integrates…

Gaurava Agarwal, MD, grew up with coal mine references through his father, and those metaphors have informed Northwestern Medicine’s approach to clinician wellness and burnout prevention. Dr. Agarwal, who serves as Chicago-based Northwestern Medicine’s chief wellness executive, told Becker’s that growing up with coal mining in his family background —…

Spending through the 340B Drug Pricing Program rose by 565% between 2010 and 2021, increasing from $6.6 billion to $43.9 billion, according to a report from the Congressional Budget Office.  In 2021, 87% of 340B purchases were made by hospital-based facilities, and 41% of total spending was on cancer drugs,…

A new analysis from the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review has found that blockbuster GLP-1 drugs from Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly offer substantial health benefits and are a cost-effective option to treat obesity.  The findings mark a shift from ICER’s last assessment on GLP-1s in 2022, which concluded…

Data from more than 750 hospitals indicate the most effective tool to reduce inpatient falls is sensor technology, according to a Sept. 10 report from Sg2, a Vizient company.  Fall-prevention sensor technologies, such as bed, chair and toilet alarms, can reduce patient falls by as much as 30%, Sg2 found.…