Nick Hut
About the Author
Nick Hut is a former newspaper reporter with more than a decade of experience at HFMA. His HFMA Daily reporting is considered a top benefit of membership as members have come to rely on Hut’s daily insights on policy, legal and business developments. He has been at the forefront of major industry news, garnering a following from national media. Nick has earned multiple national awards, including two first-place honors in 2024 from the American Society of Business Publication Editors for excellence in analysis and reporting.
Latest Work
Annual Conference 2026, Day 4: The healthcare policy outlook is sluggish heading into the midterms
Wednesday video recap: AC26 Closing Recap: Thank You, National Harbor Included in this roundup: The healthcare policy outlook is sluggish heading into the midterms CMS official gives a primer on access Succeeding under value-based care Life lessons from a Hall of Famer See you next year At a time when care delivery pressures are intensifying,…
Annual Conference 2026, Day 3: Mehmet Oz tells attendees how ongoing improvements will bolster healthcare system sustainability
Tuesday video recap: AC26 Day 3 Recap: What’s Next for Healthcare Finance In this roundup: Mehmet Oz tells attendees how improvements will bolster the sustainability of the healthcare system Hospital strategies that don’t have a strong track record Natural disasters represent another stumbling block for hospitals Planning should be underway for responding to the OBBBA…
Annual Conference 2026, Day 2: With government retrenching, the impetus is on healthcare industry stakeholders to boost sustainability
Monday video recap: AC26 Day 2 Recap: Big Questions, Bold Conversations In this roundup: With government retrenching, the impetus is on healthcare industry stakeholders to bolster sustainability Insights from the ‘affordability czar’ Jordan reflects on HFMA’s history and what lies ahead Vitalic Health session looks at how technology can drive a better system Most health…
Annual Conference 2026, Day 1: Healthcare AI shows promise, but people come first
Sunday video recap: AC26 Day 1 Recap: Celebrating 80 Years of HFMA Despite AI’s ample potential to improve healthcare, the top investment priority should be people, according to insights at the opening session of HFMA’s 2026 Annual Conference as the Association began its 80th anniversary celebration. The best technologies won’t be optimized unless “we continue…
OBBBA Medicaid cuts increase credit risk for NFP hospitals
Looming healthcare cuts as legislated in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) constitute the biggest risk to the not-for-profit (NFP) hospital industry, according to insights from experts with the leading credit-rating agencies. The OBBBA is set to hit Medicaid over the next few years, bringing potentially sizable reductions to enrollment along with direct cuts…
340B claims data requirements put hospital discounts under stress
June 18 update Eli Lilly has followed through with cutting off 340B discounts for certain hospitals that have yet to submit the required claims data (see the original story below), provider advocacy groups said Thursday. “As a result of Lilly’s decision to deny hospitals access to 340B pricing for the company’s products unless they submit…
Medicaid work requirement rule adds significant wrinkles to program eligibility criteria
For state agencies and potentially healthcare providers, CMS’s regulatory guidance on implementing the Medicaid work requirement imposes responsibilities that go beyond language seen in the underlying statute. CMS published an interim final rule with comment period late Monday, just barely meeting the June 1 deadline established in the 2025 reconciliation law known as the One…
Healthcare affordability and financial sustainability concerns test CFO strategy
Healthcare stakeholders can implement strategies that improve both affordability for consumers and financial sustainability for providers, according to insights from a recent panel discussion. The effort should start with “making sure that we understand what this balance is of financial sustainability of the institution and affordability for the patients, for the consumers, for the communities…
Final rule lowers No Surprises Act IDR fees, adds requirements
Regulations issued Thursday to update the No Surprises Act’s independent dispute resolution (IDR) process represent an effort to improve access while also streamlining the volume of cases. CMS and the Departments of Labor and Treasury published a final rule that significantly lowers IDR fees but includes more requirements of the insurers and providers that seek to use…
News Briefs: CMS proposes a modest increase to hospital inpatient payments for FY27
CMS projects an average Medicare inpatient payment increase of 2.4%, totaling $1.4 billion industrywide, when the new fiscal year begins Oct. 1. The update, described in a proposed rule for inpatient care and long-term care hospitals (LTCHs), is based on a 3.2% increase to the market basket and a 0.8% reduction via a mandatory economywide productivity adjustment.…