Healthcare industry

SAN FRANCISCO — The Sierra Kings Health District in Reedley, Calif., last week filed for Chapter 9 municipal bankruptcy protection after discovering that the proceeds of bond sales in 2006 and 2007 were misused.

The Landmark Medical Center in Woonsocket, R.I., defaulted on scheduled interest and principal payments on bonds maturing this month, triggering a payment by its insurer, according to a notice posted last week by its trustee.

CHICAGO — Henry Ford Health Systems is expected to enter the market this week with $322 million of new-money and refunding revenue bonds as part of the system’s scaled-back capital campaign to expand its services across southeast Michigan.

Louisiana has opted for binding arbitration to resolve its dispute over the replacement value for Charity Hospital in New Orleans, wich was severely damaged by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

CHICAGO — Froedtert & Community Health Inc. enters the market today to issue $187 million of revenue bonds to restructure some remaining insured auction-rate securities and variable-rate demand bonds and raise new money for various projects.

Standard & Poor’s downgraded $23 million of bonds issued for Clark Retirement Community Inc. by the Michigan Strategic Fund to BBB-minus and revised its outlook to negative.

Standard & Poor’s revised its outlook to negative from stable on debt issued for Memorial Health System in South Bend.

Scott County voters have approved $24 million of bonds to build a new 24-bed hospital in Scott City to replace a 56-year-old facility.

A recently priced bond issue for a Honolulu senior-living facility is the first startup continuing care retirement community financing in more than 18 months, underwriter Ziegler Capital Markets said in a news release.

Standard & Poor’s on Friday lowered its rating to AA-plus from AAA on various long-term bonds issued for the Nemours Foundation. Fitch Ratings on Sept. 21 dropped its rating on the credit to AA-plus from AAA.

CHICAGO - A weak economy, slow housing market, and too much variable-rate debt took their toll on continuing-care retirement communities over the last year and are expected to continue to trouble the sector throughout next year, Fitch Ratings said in a report released yesterday.

William Beaumont Hospital outside Detroit this week said it would cut 353 jobs, its third round of layoffs in a year.

The Flint-based McLaren Health Care System announced this week it would build a proton beam radiation therapy center, putting it ahead of five other systems that have battled for more than a year to be the first to build the potentially lucrative cancer center in the state.

Northwestern Memorial Healthcare last week announced its plan to sign an affiliation agreement with Lake Forest Hospital to form an integrated system.

CHICAGO — Ohio State University’s board of trustees this week approved a $1 billion expansion plan of the school’s medical center campus that will rely on $925 million of new-money bonds.

CHICAGO — Illinois erred in stripping Provena Covenant Medical Center in Urbana of its property tax exemption over charity-care levels and it should be restored because the hospital treats all patients regardless of their ability to pay, a Provena attorney told the state Supreme Court in oral arguments Wednesday.

Lower-rated borrowers that couldn't meet the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York's stringent credit requirements are likely to find the door open a little wider in the near future if staff recommendations presented yesterday are implemented.

BRADENTON, Fla. — Wills Memorial Hospital in Washington, Ga., last month sold nearly $13 million of taxable Build America Bonds with a draw-down structure and enhancements that officials believe may help other rural health-care providers access the capital markets in these difficult times.

Fitch Ratings on Monday downgraded to AA-plus from AAA its rating on $71 million of Nemours Foundation outstanding health care revenue bonds. The rating agency said the outlook is stable.

The Marion County Health and Hospital Corp. on Nov. 3 will ask voters in Indianapolis and Marion County to approve a $754 million bond proposal to finance a new facility that would replace Wishard Hospital.