Hartford Business Journal

HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | OCTOBER 16, 2023 33 POWER 25 | HEALTH CARE Kane leads a health insur- ance giant that provides benefits and coverage to employers, individuals and government entities, serving nearly 35 million people. Before leading Aetna, he acted as a strategic consultant to several private equity firms focused on healthcare services. He also spent 17 years at Goldman Sachs in the investment banking division. Kane started his new job just a few weeks before it became public that Aetna will lay off more than 300 employees in Connecticut as part of a broader cost-cutting effort. The job cuts, which will begin on Oct. 21, will largely impact corpo- rate staff, CVS said. The retail pharmacy chain said it's reducing costs as it sharpens its focus on healthcare services. CVS, which has its corporate headquarters in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, purchased Aetna in November 2018 in a deal valued at $69 billion. Kurt Barwis A nother one of the few inde- pendent hospitals remaining in Connecticut is Bristol Hospital, led by Kurt Barwis, who has been CEO for the past 17 years. The parent company, Bristol Health, which Barwis also oversees, includes the 164-bed Bristol Hospital in addi- tion to a medical group, long- term care facility and home and hospice care services. The past few years haven't been easy for the hospital, which was hit hard by the pandemic. Bristol Health has been working with consultants throughout this year to get advice on how to turn around its struggling financial position. The health system at the end of its 2022 fiscal year violated a financial covenant tied to a $34.6 million bond offering it was issued in 2019. Those funds helped finance a major renova- tion and expansion of the hospital's emergency department, in addition to refinancing older debt. The September 2022 covenant violation was a result of the health system not having enough days of cash on hand to satisfy a bond- holder's agreement. That forced Bristol Health to negotiate a default waiver with bondholders, which was granted, and to hire an outside financial consultant. The covenant violation followed several years of financial struggles for Bristol Health, which reported a $16.5 million operating loss in fiscal 2022. Connecticut's hospital industry in general has faced headwinds coming out of the pandemic, including dramat- ically rising costs, workforce short- ages and a sicker patient population. Barwis, in a July interview with the Hartford Business Journal, expressed confidence his health network will successfully make it through its current financial challenges. However, a future merger with another healthcare system isn't off the table, he said. Short term, Bristol Health is focused on implementing the consultants' recommendations, Barwis said. One recommendation was an evaluation of the health system's efficiency with scheduling patients and doctors. The network is also looking at improving its billing and collection processes and evaluating its labor force needs. "We are going to right this ship," Barwis said. "When you get in this situ- ation, you want as many ideas as are available to come forward, so you can pick and choose the ones that give you the fastest return. We obviously aren't in a position to dilly-dally." Jennifer D. Jackson A s the CEO of the Connecticut Hospital Association, Jennifer D. Jackson serves as an advocate for the state's hospitals and healthcare systems. In September, the Walling- ford-based association called for an overhaul of the state's certificate of need program, citing concerns about delays and costs. Through this program, healthcare providers must secure state approval prior to making certain changes, such as establishing a new health- care facility, transferring ownership, mergers, substantial capital investments in new equip- ment or facilities, or discontinuing a medical service. The association has called for removing unnecessary costs and regulatory burdens that have slowed the approval process. For example, concerns have been raised about the amount of time it has taken the Office of Health Strategy, which oversees the healthcare industry, to review and approve Yale New Haven Health's pending acquisi- tion of Waterbury, Rockville General and Manchester Memorial hospitals. Yale signed an acquisition agree- CONNECTICUT HOSPITALS: STANDING READY TO THE LEADERSHIP AND TEAMS AT CONNECTICUT'S HOSPITALS AND HEALTH SYSTEMS. YOU CONTINUE TO PROVIDE EXCEPTIONAL CARE TO PATIENTS ACROSS CONNECTICUT, DELIVERING NEW AND INNOVATIVE TREATMENTS WHILE STAYING READY TO RESPOND TO EMERGENCIES, LARGE AND SMALL. PROFOUND TH ANKS

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