Logan Health

The Biden administration says large tech companies will offer free and discounted cybersecurity services to small and rural hospitals.

Two of the state’s largest hospital systems announced Thursday they will officially merge in September.

Two of Montana’s largest hospital systems recently announced they intend to merge. Both Kalispell-based Logan Health and Billings Clinic say the merger will save money by keeping more patients in the state. But some experts worry the deal could increase health care costs for employers and workers.

Montana is one of the latest states to suggest many nonprofit hospitals aren't giving back enough in charitable contributions to the community to justify their tax-exempt status.

Nurses at Barrett Hospital and HealthCare voted 18 to 8 in favor of forming a union. The state nurses association says the move is part of a growing trend of organized health care labor.

Logan Health Medical Center is being sued for a data breach last year that compromised the personal information of over 200,000 patients.

In a press release, the hospital system said the funds will be used to bolster communication between EMS agencies in western Montana and host annual conferences.

A hospital network in northwest Montana is among the many health care systems in the state that will follow a federal rule requiring staff to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Hospitals that don’t comply could lose federal funding.

Montana added about 630 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday, the largest single-day increase since early January. Hospitalizations are also on the rise, causing hospitals to exceed staff and bed capacity.

A new Montana law that prohibits employers from requiring COVID-19 vaccinations has hospital leaders worried, as concerns over hospital staffing and the spread of the delta variant grows.