Tennessee’s attorney general says the state needs to pay attention to concerns of East Tennesseans about Ballad Health, a state-approved hospital monopoly.
“I think there has to be a lot of thought given to where things are moving,” said Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti. “Obviously, people in upper East Tennessee are not happy with the current situation.
“There’s a reason Ballad’s there. There was an effort to make things work and provide better healthcare, and we need to be constantly looking at the arrangement to make sure that it’s providing better healthcare.”
Skrmetti’s office, along with the Department of Health, oversees an agreement called the Certificate of Public Advantage, COPA, which allows Ballad to operate hospitals in northeastern Tennessee without the fear of competition in exchange for the company meeting various charitable obligations and quality of health care requirements.
Ballad Health CEO Alan Levine defended operations in a recent interview, saying hospitals were going to close without Ballad and the merger agreement.
Yet the company reportedly failed to meet numerous requirements under the certificate, the Tennessee Lookout reports. Read more.
