Recent member news from the December 1, 2016 Weekly Report.... Read More >>

The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) this week alerted the public to a phishing email targeting employees of entities covered by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act and their business associates.... Read More >>

State and federal laws require hospitals to provide an array of notice and signage to patients, workforce members and the public. The Washington State Office of the Attorney General has in recent months stepped up its enforcement of these types of requirements. Hospitals could be subject to significant penalties if found to be out of compliance.... Read More >>

Yesterday, the American Hospital Association submitted a letter to President-elect Donald Trump, congratulating him on his election and expressing its hopes.... Read More >>

Sometimes, music can literally be healing. According to a recent Harvard Medical School article, music can be especially helpful in a health care environment. Evidence has found that listening to music can reduce anxiety and stress associated with surgery, quell nausea associated with chemotherapy and radiation therapies, aid in pain relief, and even reduce the need for pain medication.... Read More >>

First, I should introduce myself: My name is Chris Bandoli, and I am WSHA’s new Senior Vice President of Advocacy and Government Affairs. I started at WSHA in November after nine years at Regence BlueShield. I have a passion for helping to solve health care problems, and I am excited to join the fantastic group of policy experts at WSHA.... Read More >>

As part of Healthier Washington, the Washington State Health Care Authority (HCA) has released a draft toolkit for Medicaid waiver transformation projects. Once final, the toolkit will guide the work of global waiver in the nine Accountable Communities of Health (ACH) regions during the next five years.... Read More >>

Eric Jensen, who has long been a thoughtful member of our state's hospital community, recently had his last day as chief administrative officer of EvergreenHealth Monroe. ... Read More >>

Thanksgiving comes at a beautiful time in our state, with trees shedding the last of their auburn leaves and snow beginning to fall in the mountains. This year we are also a few weeks past the close of a tense election cycle that has divided many of our communities and calls into question the future of health care. This makes Thanksgiving 2016 a particularly important one.... Read More >>

MultiCare Health System is purchasing Deaconess Hospital in Spokane and Valley Hospital in Spokane Valley, as well as Rockwood clinics, which is a network of primary, specialty and urgent care clinics in the inland Northwest. All the facilities are currently owned by Tennessee-based Community Health Systems.... Read More >>