Faced with tighter budgets three hospitals in the North Country are forming an alliance to do something about it.
NHPR’s Chris Jensen reports.
With cuts in funding - and facing an increasing demand for services - three hospitals in Coos County have agreed to work together to see how they can save money.
Without such cooperation there’s trouble ahead, says Scott Howe, the CEO of the Weeks Medical Center in Lancaster.
“Because of the economic area that we serve there are a lot of people without insurance at this point and so that is really making it financially challenging for all three of us.”
The other two hospitals are the Androscoggin Valley in Berlin and the Upper Connecticut Valley in Colebrook.
Howe says no decisions have been made on the cost-cutting targets.
“Pretty much everything is on the table.”
The idea of working together to save money began in 2008.
Howe says it took so long to reach this point due to regulatory requirements.
For NHPR News this is Chris Jensen
