Cover Story
Fiscal Strategy in an Era of Reform
Hospitals should develop strategies around four forces that will affect their financial performance in the next five to 10 years.
By David Young
Web Extra: View exhibits detailing estimates of the Medicare Part A Trust Fund balance before and after the Affordable Care Act was enacted as well as variations in Medicare spending for 90-day episodes of congestive heart failure.
Features
SCOTUS and The Voters Have Spoken: Where do we go from here?
With the future of the Affordable Care Act more certain, hospitals and health systems should focus on initiatives that improve the patient experience, enhance population health, and reduce healthcare costs.
By J. Stuart Showalter
Web Extra:Learn how states are responding to Medicaid expansion and their decisions regarding the development of health insurance exchanges.
hfm Q & A - Jeffrey C. Brenner, MD: On Driving Down the Cost of Care
Learn how the Camden Coalition uses data to improve the city’s healthcare delivery system.
Financing Your Strategic Plan: Finding the Right Tool for the Right Job
New facilities, new IT, and physician integration are three key goals requiring different approaches to financing.
By Aaron Becker, Steven Kennedy,Dan Mandy, Peter Pavarini
Community Benefit: Beyond Health Fairs and Form 990
A commitment to delivering community benefit will be a critical strategic ingredient in ensuring a hospital’s financial success in the emerging healthcare reform environment.
By Marty Martin
Web Extra:Not-for-profit hospitals should approach the CHNA requirements in a way that not only meets the IRS’s compliance requirements but also seeks to enhance the health of the communities that they serve.
What You Should Know About Restrictive Covenants in Health Care
Finance leaders should understand restrictive covenants and be prepared for their increasing role in protecting their organizations’ competitive edge in a competitive healthcare environment.
By Michael Austin, Matthew Grosack
Preparing for ICD-10: A System's Opportunity to Integrate
Strong leadership and strategic planning are helping hospital executives at UW Medicine prepare for new coding requirements under ICD-10—while enhancing integration across their system.
By Sarah Lucas
Web Extra :Program milestones for the ICD-10 Program at UW Medicine provide clear direction and transition points to ensure everyone is progressing together.
Focus Areas
Payment
Preparing for ACA-Driven Medicare Cuts
To prepare for Medicare payment cuts, hospitals may opt to limit Medicare volume, reduce people expenses, improve operational efficiency, and follow the government’s road map for success.
By Ken Perez
Integration
Population Health Management: A "Start Small" Strategy
Catholic Health Initiatives is piloting population health management for for its employees and their families and anticipates reducing employee healthcare costs by 10 to 14 percent.
By Kathleen Sanford
Physician Relations
The Risks and Rewards of Setting Physician Compensation Internally
In setting physician compensation, health systems should take clear steps to demonstrate a commitment to compliance with the standard or fair-market-value .
By Jen Johnson
Web Extra: A compensation calculator can allow a hospital to consider multiple valuation approaches and show that a consistent compensation methodology has been applied across an organization.
Columns
From the Chair
Be It Resolved...
HFMA Chair Ralph Lawson shares six strategies that are essential for ensuring long-term financial viability and creating value.
By Ralph Lawson, FHFMA, CPA
From the President
The Virtues of Curiosity
If we can regard our evolving healthcare delivery system with a healthy curiosity, that will go a long way toward overcoming apprehension about an uncertain future and resistance to change.
By Joseph Fifer, FHFMA, CPA
From the Editor
Micro and Macro
A routine outpatient procedure provides a microcosm of our healthcare system’s challenges and opportunities.
By Robert Fromberg, Editor-in-Chief
Eye on Washington
Medicaid Expansions - Will they or Won't They?
It is not yet known how many states will participate in the expanded Medicaid program, but initial estimates indicated that as many as half of the newly insured will come from Medicaid expansions.
By Gail Wilensky
Healthcare Value
The Rising Transparency Tide
Greater transparency of healthcare price and quality information is a rising tide, but it will not lift all boats.
By James Landman
Healthcare Reform
Addressing Healthcare Complexity
Over the years, analogies to various manufacturing and service industries have highlighted opportunities to improve the quality, outcomes, and costs of health service delivery.
By William Weeks, Eric Wadsworth
Capital Finance
Winds of Change
Investment portfolios of many healthcare organizations look dramatically different today from a decade ago, especially allocation of assets.
By William Jarvis
5 Ways To...
5 Ways to Reduce Risk Related to Personal Health Information
To mitigate liability associated with noncompliance with HIPAA and the HITECH Act, healthcare providers should take five steps to assess these risks.
By Rachel Rose
Data Trends
Solving the Rural Healthcare Revenue Conundrum
Etcetera
Member Spotlight: At Home on the Range
Publication Date: Tuesday, January 01, 2013