ICYMI: The Minnesota Star Tribune spotlighted the challenges facing HCMC, a taxpayer-supported hospital in Minneapolis. Known statewide for its specialized patient care, HCMC is confronting worsening financial strain. From the article:
Three people arrived at HCMC in downtown Minneapolis on a recent Friday around the same time and for the same reason: They could not find the health care they needed anywhere else.
Audrey Gohre’s feet were mangled by a boat propeller in Lake Waconia. Skyler Seidel burned 40% of his skin when he tripped carrying a pot of boiling oil in Sturgis, S.D. Susan Linnell had the dental problems of a woman her age, 57, but the mental capacity of a toddler.
“She can’t cooperate,” said her mother, Carol Linnell. “I worry about her biting the dentists.”
The specialized care of all three patients last month underscores what’s at stake as Hennepin County retakes direct control of the taxpayer-supported hospital and its parent health care system, Hennepin Healthcare.
Without increasing funding or making cuts, the county can’t afford HCMC and its worsening financial problems. It also can’t afford to lose the urban medical center and its unmatched expertise in areas such as wound and burn care.