April 30, 2002 - Fresenius Medical Care is opening two new dialysis facilities in the Spokane, Washington area. Story from the Spokesman-Review.

June 7, 2001 - It appears that Fresenius Medical Care will finally be breaking into the Spokane, Washington market after years of trying to obtain approval from the state.

Sacred Heart Medical Center and its dialysis partner, Inland Northwest Renal Care Group, are still trying to block Fresenius.

May 23, 2000 - A formal letter of intent has been signed by Renal Care Group (RCG) and Sacred Heart Medical Center to form a joint venture to provide dialysis services in eastern Washington and Northern Idaho. (http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/000522/tn_renal_c.html = link no longer valid)

May 15, 2000 - Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane has now decided to joint venture with Renal Care Group rather than sell its dialysis facilities outright. This strategy will keep a competing hospital from providing chronic dialysis services.

April 30, 2000 - Sacred Heart Hospital in Spokane has the nation's oldest private, nonprofit kidney dialysis program, which was started 38 years ago. Sacred Heart announced their intention to sell their dialysis facilities to a for-profit dialysis provider, Renal Care Group (RCG) of Nashville, earlier this month.

In the state of Washington, the Department of Health must approve the sale and construction of all dialysis facilities and stations. A rival medical center in Spokane, Deaconess, has now applied to open a dialysis center. Sacred Heart has also applied to expand one of its facilities before the sale to RCG is completed. Fresenius Medical Care, which has been excluded from this local market, wants to present its objections to both applications at the upcoming May 12 Department of Health hearing.

Here are the stories as they have appeared on the Spokane.net web site:

April 29
April 3
April 1

Here is a story from Modern Healthcare magazine that uses the Spokane situation to explain the dilemma that many hospitals face concerning their dialysis facilities.


[This message has been edited by Gary Peterson (edited 04-30-2002).]