Healthcare Financial News

Inpatient volumes are expected to decline but outpatient volume will increase correspondingly, according to results of a new survey from HFMA’s Healthcare Financial Pulse project. Some financial executives surveyed anticipate that volume will grow in selected inpatient areas, including cardiac, surgical, and intensive care unit/critical care unit services. Two-thirds of survey respondents anticipate a modest increase in net patient revenue over the previous year. Uninsured and underinsured patients will present significant challenges as hospitals are called upon to provide greater amounts of charity care and community benefits.

In response to patient volume changes, hospitals are adjusting staffing and related costs; increasing their focus on service line management; targeting physician recruitment, relationships, and referrals; and reexamining payer and supplier contracts and relationships.

Asked to consider prospects for long-term change, the top two areas for transformational change cited by respondents are related to clinical and business IT.

Read the full survey results.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) launched a web site and helpline (866-400-6689) where certain unemployed workers may request expedited review of a denial by their former employers of eligibility for COBRA premium assistance under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA).

CMS has contracted with MAXIMUS Federal Services, Inc., to review requests for expedited review of denials and make recommendations—subject to CMS’s review—on whether individuals are eligible for health insurance premium assistance under the Recovery Act’s expansion of COBRA continuation coverage. MAXIMUS will also answer questions about the premium assistance program and the expedited review process. 

To help displaced workers maintain healthcare coverage for themselves and their families, ARRA provides a 65 percent subsidy for health insurance premiums for workers who have elected COBRA after they have been involuntarily terminated from their jobs. ARRA’s premium assistance applies to periods of continuation coverage beginning on or after February 17, 2009 (when ARRA became law), and lasts for up to nine months. 

Read the CMS press release.

Hospitals participating in the Hospital Quality Alliance can now preview their most recent quarterly data at the QualityNet web site. The data that displays in the preview reports will be released to the public on the Hospital Compare web site in mid-September. After previewing the data, hospitals should report any errors to their Quality Improvement Organization by August 11.