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Drug Industry Taking Bigger Role in Clinical Cancer Trials [Video]

Key Takeaways Pharmaceutical companies are shouldering an increasing role in funding cancer clinical trialsResearchers called on the federal government to step up its investment in cancer researchThey said government-funded research often reach a more diverse set of patients TUESDAY, Oct. 1, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Clinical trials sponsored by Big Pharma enrolled eight times as

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Steward hospitals in Massachusetts transition to new owners [Video]

Massachusetts hospitals that survived Steward Health Care’s bankruptcy are now being operated by a trio of local hospital groups. As of Monday morning, Gov. Maura Healey’s office confirmed that Lifespan is the new operator of Morton Hospital and Saint Annes Hospital; Lawrence General Hospital is the new operator of Holy Family Hospital-Methuen and Holy Family Hospital-Haverhill; and Boston Medical Center is the new operator of Good Samaritan and St. Elizabeths. “Today, these hospitals are freed from Steward’s greed and mismanagement, and start fresh with established, reputable and local operators,” the governor said in a statement. “They are ready to not only keep these hospitals going, but to enhance the care they provide and strengthen the communities that depend on them.”Lawrence General Hospital held a ceremony Tuesday morning to “mark the preservation of these vital community assets and the beginning of a new regional health care system for the Merrimack Valley.” Blue tape covered over Steward’s name on the Holy Family signs.”We are proud to welcome Holy Family Hospital, its patients, and employees to our new regional health care system,” said Dr. Abha Agrawal, President and CEO of Lawrence General Hospital. “Stronger than the sum of our parts, we will bring high quality, equitable care to our communities with this integration.”Video below: Holy Family Hospital ceremony”Good Samaritan Medical Center and St. Elizabeths Medical Center are invaluable resources in their communities,” said Alastair Bell, MD, President & CEO of BMC Health System. “We are proud today to welcome the patients and communities served by both hospitals into our health system. Together, with the highly skilled clinicians and staff at each hospital, we will work to ensure stability and as seamless a transition as possible for patients, with a long-term focus on sustainability across our health system.”Steward filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on May 6.The purchase agreements were originally announced in late August, but final negotiations went down to the wire. Massachusetts is on the hook for $511 million over several years to support the hospitals. That includes at least $417 million to support the hospitals over three years after they are transferred to new ownership and another $72 million spent to keep the facilities open through August and September.Additionally, Healey formally seized St. Elizabeths Medical Center in Boston for $21.9 million through eminent domain to keep the hospital open.During an unusual Sunday hearing, a representative of Steward warned that it was “critical” to allow the sales to close because, after Monday, the buyers could potentially walk away from their offers. Also, state funding to keep the hospitals afloat under Steward’s ownership would run out at the end of the month.Also Tuesday, de la Torre, who was previously the CEO of Boston-based Caritas Christi Health Care and a cardiac surgeon at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, is expected to step down. De la Torre was held in contempt of Congress last month for refusing to testify to a Senate committee about the company’s bankruptcy and has sued the committee in response. Carney Hospital and Nashoba Valley Medical Center closed at the end of August after Steward did not find qualified bidders.The future of Norwood Hospital, which was under construction, remains unclear.