Donna Alger, 85, works as an RN in the pre-operative evaluation clinic at the Mayo Clinic in Arizona, in today's bite-sized hospital and health industry news from Arizona, Georgia, and Michigan.
- Arizona: Donna Alger, who's 85 years old, recently celebrated 63 years of nursing. Currently, Alger works as an RN in the pre-operative evaluation clinic at Mayo Clinic in Arizona. Fox 10 reports that Alger "shows no signs of stopping." Alger said of her work, "[I] wake up every morning with gratitude and then being able to come to this stimulating, caring, supporting environment" (Roman, Fox 10 Phoenix, 8/16).
- Georgia: Georgia Insurance Commissioner John King on Thursday warned consumers of the risks of joining a Health Care Sharing Ministries (HCSM) program instead of purchasing health insurance. Members of HCSMs share health care costs, and while the costs are typically lower than traditional health insurance, HCSM members do not have the same legal rights as people who purchase traditional insurance. A spokesperson for King said more Georgia consumers in the last year have complained that ministries have refused to cover medical costs or denied coverage because of pre-existing conditions. The spokesperson explained that the members assumed they'd purchased an insurance product (Miller, Georgia Health News, 8/22).
- Michigan: The University of Michigan and Saint Joseph Mercy Health System are in talks to build a new hospital, the Detroit Free Press reports. According to internal emails between the organizations, Michigan Medicine would be a co-owner and minority partner of the new hospital. The hospital, located in Livingston County, would be governed by Trinity Health. (Paavola, Becker's Hospital Review, 8/23; Paavola, Becker's Hospital Review, 8/23).