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Article: Adjusting to new bankruptcy law; Hospitals can expect surge in bad debt, fewer reasons to file for Chapter 11.(The Week In Healthcare)
- Article from:
- Modern Healthcare
- Article date:
- November 21, 2005
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2005 Crain Communications, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: Cinda Becker
Hospitals probably should steel themselves for a momentary spike in bad debt because of a last-minute rush of personal bankruptcy filings prior to the law that went into effect on Oct. 17. But for the industry in general, the changes will most likely weaken what little rationale hospitals have had for choosing Chapter 11 reorganization as a way of cleansing themselves of debt.
In addition, the new laws might diminish the appetite that for-profit hospitals have for buying foundering not-for-profit hospitals.
Confusing as they are, the changes will make hospital bankruptcies more expensive and make it more difficult to ...