Rochester, N.H.-based Frisbie Memorial Hospital delayed billing patients for more than 10 months as it rolled out a new medical records system, Foster's reports.
Here's what you should know:
1. The hospital delayed sending out 10,000-plus bills, while it implemented its new medical records system. Fisbie's President John Marzinzik said the delay was by design to ensure all the bills were accurate while the new system was being installed.
2. Hospital staff members sent an anonymous letter to Foster's outlining concerns about the hospital's finances and its administration. The staff members specifically criticized the over-budget and delayed implementation of the hospital's new $13.5 million Meditech system.
3. In the letter, the administrators also reference the hospital's recent decision to close Skyhaven Surgery Center in Rochester. The hospital closed the center as a "business decision."
4. In addition to closing the surgery center, the hospital suspended employees' holiday bonuses and stopped matching 403(b) plan contributions.
5. Frisbee's Medical Executive Committee President Shannon Nedelka, MD, sent a separate letter to Foster's saying not all hospital staff members share the anonymous group's concerns.