3 NoCo hospitals among state’s most affordable

Three northern Colorado hospitals made a new top 10 list of affordable health care centers in the state, with Poudre Valley Health in Fort Collins securing the top spot, Loveland’s Medical Center of the Rockies ranking fifth, and McKee Medical Center, also of Loveland, ranking seventh.

The ranking, by consumer finance blog NerdWallet.com, included an analysis of the most affordable procedures each facility offers as well as patient satisfaction statistics. According to NerdWallet’s analysis, Poudre Valley Health offers the most affordable treatments for appendicitis, kidney damage and asthma and has a patient satisfaction rating of 82 percent, while Medical Center of the Rockies is listed as having the most affordable treatments for heart attack, dehydration and drug poisoning, with a patient satisfaction ranking of 87 percent. McKee is listed as offering the most affordable treatment for fluid in lungs, diabetic ketoacidosis, and kidney damage and has a patient satisfaction rating of 80 percent.

Paul Matthews, a spokesman for Banner Health, which operates McKee Medical Center, said the facility is deeply invested in the out comes it achieves for patients.

“We continue to focus on providing health care as effectively and efficiently as possible,” Matthews said. Other hospital spokespeopole were not immediately available for comment.
The survey is a four-month-old initiative by the finance blog intended to help people find affordable insurance and health-care providers.

“NerdWallet Health is working to provide cost transparency to patients,´ said NerdWallet Analyst Napala Pratini.

Using data provided by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, NerdWallet analyzed dozens of data sets and found that, so far, Colorado hospitals overall appear to have higher patient satisfaction ratings than those in other states such as Florida and Texas, where ratings often are in the 60 percent range, Pratini said.

NerdWallet looked at data from 45 hospitals on 100 of the most common treatments to determine top providers in the state. They are ranked as follows:
1. Poudre Valley Hospital, Fort Collins
2. Arkansas Valley Regional Medical Center, La Junta
3. Montrose Memorial Hospital, Montrose
4. Memorial Hospital Central, Colorado Springs
5. Medical Center of the Rockies, Loveland
6. Delta County Memorial Hospital, Delta
7. McKee Medical Center, Loveland
8. Penrose-St. Francis Health Services, Colorado Springs
9. St. Mary’s Hospital & Regional Medical Center, Grand Junction
10. Community Hospital, Grand Junction

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