August 14, 2025
It was a tumultuous week for healthcare in Minnesota as St. Cloud-based CentraCare announced that it was laying off 535 of its employees, and the Hennepin County Board of Commissioners voted to dissolve the Hennepin Healthcare System board, which controls Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC) in downtown Minneapolis.
Both decisions were financially motivated.
A large majority, 70%, of the CentraCare layoffs include administrative and support positions. “To safeguard the organization’s stability and to continue delivering high-quality care, we have made difficult, but necessary, staffing adjustments,” CentraCare stated.
The Hennepin County Board’s action is in response to a “mounting financial crisis that threatens the long-term viability of the county’s flagship public hospital and safety-net health system,” the board said in a release. HCMC has reportedly lost money seven of the past eight years.
The County Board’s goal is to “stabilize operations, preserve essential services, and ensure continued access to care for the county’s most vulnerable residents.”
October 8, 2026
On September 29, a Hennepin County jury issued an $84 million malpractice verdict against Fairview Health Services, in a case involving a patient who died of complications following an exercise-induced heart attack.
October 8, 2026
A group of fifth-grade students from Lincoln Elementary School in St. Cloud got a firsthand look at the world of medicine on October 5, during a special Mini Medical School Day hosted by the University of Minnesota Medical School CentraCare Regional Campus St. Cloud.
October 8, 2026
On October 7, the MMA released an updated version of its “The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) Resource Guide for Physicians.”