On Saturday March 18, Eastern Maine Healthcare CEO, Norman Ledwin wrote part one of this editorial that appeared in the Bangor Daily News Click here to share your opinion with Norm Hospitals misunderstood asset By Norman Ledwin First of two parts. Click here for part two. A commentary growing in popularity in Maine is focused on criticizing our state's hospitals. The fervor is led by insurance carriers, which find a willing audience in businesses and government offices, frustrated by rising health insurance premiums. However, when astute business leaders take the time to dig into the matter more deeply, they recognize that the formula for these increases is far more complex.
Hospitals make an easy target, and they are vulnerable largely because they are so misunderstood.
The purpose of my article has less to do with unraveling the insurance premium crisis, which the governor is turning over to a blue ribbon panel of experts, and more to do with addressing the misunderstanding of our hospital's critical and fragile role in the state of Maine. This confusion hangs like an albatross around the neck of our industry, which is sad since it puts a schism between hospitals and the communities they serve. And as nonprofit institutions, any revenues that exceed expenses go back into additional services for the community. Medicare reimbursement Pretend, for a minute, you are a bricklayer. Your major customer let's call him Sam hires you to do all of the fireplaces in his home construction business.