BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – A report mandated by the legislature to prevent rural hospital closures and bankruptcies has been called into question by several hospitals.
“There are some very concerning recommendations I think. Some of the hospital said, ‘oh, you’re going to be changing us radically,’” said Vt. Senator Ginny Lyons.
The latest critiques come from Gifford and North Country Hospital, which say the consulting firm Oliver Wyman used false data to create the report. In a statement put out by officials from Gifford, they said, “Some key data points were incorrect, including acute inpatient admissions, emergency department visits, and birthing center births.”
We met with a team of data analysts to look over the numbers to find out what was wrong.
The first thing to note is that the consultant used multiple data sets, one provided by Vermont Association of Hospitals and Health Systems, another which is an all-payer claims database, and vital statistics from the Department of Health. “There are different data sources for different purposes,” said Chair of the Green Mountain Care Board Owen Foster.
Regulators say the number of inpatient and emergency department visits were calculated using the all-payer claims database because they best represent financial impact.
The only error we could find had to do with births over a two-year period, which were incorrectly presented as over a two-year period instead of one.
Earlier this week, hospitals asked for the report to be retracted because of the quote “inaccurate data” that was sourced. Michael Del Trecco, who represents Vermont’s hospitals, says he no longer believes a retraction is necessary.
“What’s really important is that everything we do forward from here is based on good data, working with our clinicians, working with our communities, working with our partners at AHS and the Green Mountain Care Board,” Del Trecco.
As hospitals and the Agency for Human Services take their next steps in hiring a consultant for implementation, analyzing the feasibility of the recommendations, and communicating with the community, the legislature is there for oversight and help if needed.
“Now it’s time to take a step off the cliff and have faith in one another, and that will lead toward hospital sustainability, which will lead to some changes within the system, but it’s not going to be destructive,” said Senator Lyons.