Health Insurance Costs in Virginia Rising Despite Low Levels of Healthcare Spending, Study Finds

The Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association (VHHA) is bringing awareness to a new study showing health insurance premiums and deductible costs among Virginians are rising despite the state’s overall healthcare spending remaining below national levels.

“When it comes to health care spending, Virginia is in the enviable position of having expenditure rates that remain well below national levels. The same cannot be said for health insurance costs, unfortunately,” the VHHA said in a press release. “On the contrary, the amount that individuals and families across the Commonwealth spend on annual health insurance premiums and out-of-pocket deductibles continues to rise sharply year-over-year.”

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Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association Rebrands Its VHHA Shared Services Division

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The Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association (VHHA) announced the rebranding of its VHHA Shared Services division, which delivers products and resources to help Virginia hospitals and health systems improve their clinical, financial, and operational performance.

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Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association Launches Campaign Focused on Educating the Public About Health Care Law Reforms

The Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association (VHHA) announced Monday the launch of a new public awareness campaign focused on making sure patients and families in Virginia “know their rights to help them make informed medical decisions.”

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Commentary: Virginia Again Ranked Among Top States in National Scorecard on Hospital Patient Safety

Virginia’s run as one of the top states in the nation for hospital safety scores continues. The Commonwealth is second overall among states in the Fall 2023 Leapfrog Group Hospital Safety Grade state rankings that are based on the share of hospitals in each state that earn “A” grades.

“Providing high-quality, compassionate care focused on patient dignity and safety is central to the mission of hospitals across Virginia,” said Ballad Health Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Eric Deaton, the Chair of the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association (VHHA) Board of Directors. “The latest Leapfrog Group Hospital Safety Grade scores showing strong performance on patient safety illustrates the priority Virginia hospitals place on caring for patients.”

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Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association Releases Videos Highlighting Health Care Professionals’ Personal Stories Regarding Workplace Violence

The Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association (VHHA) released a series of videos featuring the stories of hospital nurses across the state who have firsthand experience with workplace violence in clinical settings.

The videos have been released in recognition of the annual Hospitals Against Violence initiative, which focuses on “identifying strategies to combat workplace and community violence,” according to VHHA.

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Vaccinations in Virginia Are Lagging Behind Distributed Doses

Coronavirus vaccination efforts by the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) have been ongoing since December 15, but the number of administered doses is significantly less than the amount distributed throughout the Commonwealth.

According to the COVID-19 vaccine dashboard, as of Thursday, Virginia has distributed 388,100 doses, but only 64,882 have actually been administered so far.

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More Than 40,000 Virginians Have Received COVID-19 Vaccines So Far

Roughly 41,709 Virginians have received first doses of the COVID-19 vaccines so far, according to the Virginia Department of Health (VDH), as the state continues its efforts to reach herd immunity and put an end to the coronavirus pandemic.

Last week, the VDH launched the COVID-19 vaccine data dashboard, which will be updated daily to keep the public informed about the number of vaccines distributed and administered as well as the demographics of recipients.

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Northam Imposes Curfew, New Mask Requirement, Updated Gathering Limits for Virginia

Virginia Governor Ralph Northam issued increased statewide restrictions during a press briefing Thursday afternoon to combat rising coronavirus numbers in the Commonwealth as the Christmas holiday approaches.

Starting at 12:01 a.m. on Monday, December 14th, a modified stay-at-home order will be in place with a curfew for all Virginians from midnight to 5 a.m. The only exceptions are getting food and goods, seeking medical attention as well as traveling to and from work.

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Department of Health: Virginia to Receive 480,000 Vaccine Doses by End of December

The Virginia Department of Health (VDH) announced on Friday that the Commonwealth is preparing to receive 480,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine by the end of December based on new information from the federal government’s Operation Warp Speed.  

As Governor Ralph Northam noted during a coronavirus briefing on Wednesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) voted last week to officially recommend healthcare personnel and long-term care facility residents as top priority for vaccination.

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Virginia COVID-19 Update: Coronavirus Numbers Rising Throughout the State, Vaccine Expected by Year End, Officials Say

As the winter months, colder weather and the holiday season are approaching, the coronavirus numbers, encompassing a number of different metrics, have been increasing throughout Virginia over the last month or so, according to government officials.

At a televised briefing Tuesday afternoon, Governor Ralph Northam said the state is seeing a rise in cases, percent positivity – now at 6.2 percent – and hospitalizations.

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COVID-19 Update: Virginia’s Current Outlook by the Numbers

A report from the University of Virginia (UVA) Biocomplexity Institute published last Friday showed that the statewide COVID-19 reproduction rate is above 1.0 (1.031) and in all regions except one, meaning the virus is spreading quickly across the Commonwealth, and classifies five out of 35 health districts as a surge.

The UVA Biocomplexity Institute also uses an adaptive model, tracing past and current trends, to predict what could happen in the future. In that report, the model predicted there could be 202,040 total confirmed cases in Virginia by Thanksgiving, an increase of 41,197 confirmed cases from Saturday’s count.

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Gov. Northman’s Virginia Power Grab Defies Science

The Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association (VHHA) presented analysis of COVID-19 hospitalization data on patient demographics, age and sex, accompanying chronic conditions and length of stay during a webinar on Thursday.

The study reviewed statewide data trends from over 8,700 COVID hospitalizations in Virginia between January and June of 2020, and was presented by David Vaamonde, vice president of data analytics for the VHHA.

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