Scripps CEO Featured in Newsweek Article Examining Avoidable Bed Days

Scripps Health President and CEO Chris Van Gorder’s effort to raise awareness about a significant problem facing hospitals across the country gained traction recently when Newsweek reported about patients who linger long-term in the hospital because step-down care facilities won’t take them even though they are ready for discharge. 

Most often, those patients are covered by Medi-Cal insurance which pays reimbursements that fall far short of covering the actual cost of their care. Unlike hospitals, other facilities do not have to take these patients, so they don’t. 

“It’s a patient care issue, but it’s also forcing us to make very difficult decisions about the services we can offer so that we can have enough beds to put patients in,” Van Gorder told Newsweek. 

Read the Newsweek article: ‘Wallet Biopsies’ Strand Thousands in California Hospitals, CEO Says