CMS issues RFI to gather best practices for identifying and supporting safety net hospitals
As part of the FY24 proposed rule for hospital inpatient payments, CMS is seeking healthcare stakeholder input on how to best support safety net hospitals in the Medicare program. The agency is considering ways to reimburse safety net hospitals via supplemental payments that may be better targeted than disproportionate share hospital (DSH) and uncompensated care…
Congress seems inclined to expand site-neutral payment policies in Medicare (updated)
Momentum is building in Congress toward expanding site-neutral payment in Medicare, a move that could reduce payments to hospitals by billions of dollars per year. A recent hearing, which lasted 5 ½ hours, focused on various ideas for promoting transparency and competition in healthcare. The hearing included references to 17 bills or discussion drafts, several…
Enterprisewide physician advisor programs are key to improving costs and revenue cycle performance
Making sure physicians understand the financial implications of how they document their care is critical to a health system’s financial sustainability.
Healthcare disruptor Glen Tullman says providers need more of a consumer-centric approach
One of the country’s most prominent healthcare entrepreneurs has a warning for legacy healthcare stakeholders. “Many of you in the audience are leading major health systems, and you’re the hub for healthcare today,” Glen Tullman said during a presentation at the HIMSS Global Health Conference and Exhibition, which took place the week of April 17…
Hospitals are facing a long slog to return to pre-pandemic normalcy, panelists say
The logjam of patients who cannot be seen expeditiously at hospitals is becoming an entrenched problem with no imminent solutions, a CMS leader said this week. “The data tells us healthcare services, particularly for the Medicare population, have not come back to pre-pandemic levels,” said Jonathan Blum, principal deputy administrator and COO with CMS. “We’re…
State of Medicare: Some good news on program solvency still leaves questions and challenges
Medicare should remain solvent a little bit longer than previously anticipated, while a policy debate is ramping up over how to make the program sustainable for the long term. The 2023 annual report of the Medicare Boards of Trustees projects that the Hospital Insurance (HI) trust fund, which subsidizes Part A services, essentially will be…
Healthcare 2030: Leveraging good leadership to work toward financial sustainability
HFMA Senior Editor Paul Barr discusses Volume 2 of the Healthcare 2030 series. Katie Sklarsky from Chartis talks about financial sustainability, and Danielle Solomon from FORVIS talks about the importance of good leadership in times of change.
Financial and operational pressures continue for hospitals amid some positive signs
New financial data for the hospital industry illustrate continuing challenges even as some trends improve. Fitch Ratings released an analysis in early March that offers scant reason for optimism. Titled “Early NFP Hospital Medians Show Expected Deterioration; Will Worsen,” it draws on data from hospitals with earlier 2022 financial year-ends. Those numbers show “materially weaker…
Various data highlight the ongoing labor challenges facing hospitals and other healthcare providers
The healthcare labor picture may be stabilizing in some respects, but hospitals and other providers continue to feel the squeeze. The industry added 58,200 jobs in January, including 10,900 at hospitals and health systems, according to preliminary seasonally adjusted data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That jump follows an average monthly increase of…
Clinical audits and denials impact 3% or more of NPR being held in reserve
This pulse survey shows how healthcare organizations are currently tracking health system’s audits and denials from government and commercial payers.