News

The Washington State Medical Association (WSMA) and the Washington State Hospital Association (WSHA) announced today the launch of a joint task force to develop solutions to address the growing opioid epidemic, with an eye towards ways physicians and hospitals can play a more active role in tackling this issue.... Read More >>

Rural health care is a vital part of the American health care system. It is the backbone of rural communities, not just supporting health, but also providing these communities with jobs and economic stability.... Read More >>

Rural hospitals face unique challenges and opportunities every day. Situated across our state’s beautiful countryside, they help ensure that everyone in Washington has access to high quality health care to keep living healthy, fulfilling lives. They also bring jobs as well as economic stability to their communities, serving as a conduit to emergency services and primary care.... Read More >>

Last week, with record numbers of you, I attended the CEO & Trustee Patient Safety Summit. This event brings together over 300 hundred trustees, commissioners and hospital executives to talk about how hospitals can make patients safer.... Read More >>

he Washington State Department of Health is seeking nominations for the Warren Featherstone Reid Award for Excellence in Healthcare. This award recognizes individuals and facilities that have exhibited exceptional quality and value in the delivery of health services.... Read More >>

Early evidence suggests that the Food and Drug Administration Safety and Innovation Act of 2012 has reduced drug shortages overall, but not for acute care drugs, according to a study published May 2 in Health Affairs.... Read More >>

WSHA is pleased to announce more great progress in our work improving health care in our state! Washington hospitals are making great strides in safety with 40,600 fewer harms, 19,000 fewer readmissions and 5,000 few early elected deliveries.... Read More >>

April marks National Minority Health Month, so before we head into May, WSHA would like to take a moment and reflect on some of the ways our state’s hospitals and health systems are providing care to our diverse communities.... Read More >>

Just days after CMS received letters signed by 60 U.S. Senators and 225 members of the House of Representatives requesting a delay of the overall star rating, the agency announced it would postpone the launch until July. The letter, signed by Washington State’s Sen. Maria Cantwell and Reps. Suzanne DelBene, Denny Heck, David Reichert, Derek Kilmer and Dan Newhouse, states what WSHA has also expressed: the star rating may simplify complex measures to the point of inaccuracy.... Read More >>

Sufficient evidence has accumulated to infer a causal relationship between prenatal Zika virus infection and microcephaly and other severe brain anomalies, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study published April 13 by the New England Journal of Medicine.... Read More >>