Columbia/HCA to Take 4th-Quarter Change

Columbia/HCA said it will take another charge in the fourth quarter to cover costs of a reorganization and its internal efforts to resolve a wide government Medicare billing probe, an analyst with J.P. Morgan Securities said. While the Nashville company hasn’t given any number for the charge, analyst Joe Chiarelli said he estimated it would be $38 million, or 6 cents a share, which is what the company took in the third quarter. The company has also said it is looking at an additional one-time charge for a total revaluation of its assets, which include about 340 hospitals as well as hundreds of home health sites and surgery centers. Columbia needs to update the current value of many assets from what it paid for them, Chiarelli said. Shares in Nashville-based Columbia rose 13 cents to close at $29.75 on the NYSE.