Private Equity continues to improve profits at the cost of medical care. The doctors of a NICU in Oregon - by the numbers one of the best NICUs in the country based on patient outcomes - were fired and replaced with a different group of doctors. No good explanation has been given for the firings.
Here’s Dr. Glaucomflecken explanining it in a rare non-funny video.
The financialization of every industry imaginable is not a sustainable economic model. In this specific case, it is likely literally killing future customers.
From what I read, Asante is governed by a board of directors made up of local community members. It is a non-profit healthcare system. I don’t find any information that it is controlled or owned by a private equity group. Asante health system also laid off 300 employees as part of a cost cutting endeavor. Asante Health System reported a cumulative operating loss of $16 million in the first six months of 2026. The Asante Regional Medical Center [Medford, Oregon] has a large Medicaid population >40%. That is not sustainable with current 2026 Medicaid reimbursements. The Asante Regional Hospital sounds like what are called safety-net hospitals that treat a substantial portion of patients who are uninsured or on Medicaid. These hospitals require large grants from local and state government to sustain operation. Further, uninsured and Medicaid patients tend present with higher care needs and added costs.
All about the money and control. With a private group running the NICU, the hospital only collects on the patient bed stays. Not on any procedure, care, etc., just for the occupation of the bed. Fire the private MDs, hire a group, the hospital is paying $X per day for the physicians. What ever procedure, care, etc., they do, the hospital bills and collects and trys/hopes/plans on making a bigger profit between all the billing and what the gun for hire group charges them.
This game plan has/is happening in anesthesia, ER, radiology, and any other hospital dependent specialty.
Oregon’s GDP growth (gross domestic product, an economic measure) lags the overall U.S. GDP growth.
Unemployment rate in Oregon has increased to 5.2%.
Oregon lost 25,000 private and public sector jobs last year.
Oregon’s population growth rate is among the lowest in the country, and for several years, there has been a net loss of income tax paying residents in the state.
Oregon’s total effective business tax burden increased by 33% between 2019 and 2023.
Oregon has dropped to 39th in CNBC’s ranking of America’s Top States for Business, falling 22 places in less than 10 years, including a fall of 11 places in 2024.
Even though Asante is a nonprofit, we face the same economic headwinds as any Oregon organization or business. Our decisions are guided by Mission and community impact for the people who rely on our services and employment. It’s essential to respond to these regional economic headwinds to protect essential services"
Assante is suffering steep financial losses and had to close entirely a neighboring NICU because it serviced less than 37 births in the last year. In addition, they have let go of 27 hospitalists across the southern region of Oregon. By some estimates, 70% of the hospitals in Oregon are in some state of near financial crisis, operating at negligible or negative margins.
