Economy

Moody's Investors Service has downgraded the Washington Township Health Care District's long-term revenue bonds to Baa1 from A3, affecting $232 million of debt.

Virginia Gov. Robert McDonnell announced this week that the Virginia Transportation Infrastructure Bank will provide $160 million in loans to help finance two major transportation projects in the commonwealth.

With the final step in the federal environmental review process completed this week, the $2.6 billion Ohio River Bridges Project will allow Kentucky and Indiana to award construction contracts before the end of the year and the spans will serve to ease congestion across the Ohio River, said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.

The U.S. Department of Transportation has released $10 million under its TIGER grant program to modernize the infrastructure and warehouse facilities at the Hunts Point Terminal Market in New York City’s Bronx borough.

The Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority is scheduled to sell $195.6 million of general revenue variable-rate refunding bonds on Thursday by competitive bid.

Richland County, S.C., council members are poised to try to ask voters for the second time in two years to approve a 1-cent, 20-year sales tax to finance nearly $940 million in transit and road projects.

Lacking a financial plan for the $5 billion Tappan Zee Bridge replacement, the New York State Thruway Authority received negative ratings outlooks.

Chicago Blue Line Renewal & City Bike Share, Ill., $20 million I-95 HOT Lanes, Northern Va., $20 million State Route 91 Corridor Improvements, Calif., $20 million South Jersey Port Rail Improvements, N.J., $18.50 million LYNX Blue Line Capacity Expansion, N.C., $18 million Sellwood Bridge Replacement, Ore., $17.7 million Port of Long Beach Rail Realignment, Calif., $17 million Port of New Orleans Rail Yard Improvements, La., $16.7 million

CHICAGO — Traffic between Michigan and Canada may not be sufficient in the short term to justify construction of a new $3.5 billion trade bridge between the two countries, but that will likely change over the long term, Fitch Ratings said in a commentary released this week.

Despite a downgrade to Ba1 by Moody’s Investors Service, the Temple University Health System saw strong demand for $311 million of revenue and refunding bonds issued through the Philadelphia Hospitals and Higher Education Facilities Authority.

The popular federal TIGER grant program for major transportation projects would be axed if Republicans get their way.

Fairview Health Services got hit with a downgrade from Moody’s Investors Service and a warning of further negative action due to fiscal 2011 operating losses and potential fallout from the state attorney general’s probe into its bill collection practices.

Michigan and Canadian officials Friday announced an agreement to build a new $4 billion, largely bond-financed trade bridge that has Canada taking on nearly all of the financial risk for the massive project.

The California Department of Transportation and the San Francisco County Transportation Authority closed Thursday on financing for the $1.1 billion Presidio Parkway Public-Private Partnership.

Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn last week signed sweeping health care legislation that dramatically eases the Medicaid funding burden on state coffers while defusing a fiscal threat posed to not-for-profit hospitals.

Alaska Railroad’s bonds appear to be safe despite uncertainty surrounding federal grants that back them, according to reports.

WASHINGTON — The push for Congress to pass long-term highway funding legislation is reaching a fever pitch two weeks before the current law expires, as Sen. Barbara Boxer led a rally Wednesday urging approval of her two-year transportation bill in time to avoid another extension.

The Louisiana Department of Highways and Economic Development will produce a report by the end of 2012 on whether tolls can help finance construction of the final 136 miles of Interstate Highway 49 from Lafayette to New Orleans.

The Georgia Department of Transportation last week issued a request for qualifications for firms interested in designing, building and partially financing the nearly 30-mile, $1 billion Northwest Corridor project along Interstate 75 and 575 in Cobb and Cherokee counties.

Charity care is on the rise at Missouri hospitals and that increase is not expected to abate due to lower Medicaid enrollment and job losses due to the economy, according to a report released last week.