Road to value begins with addressing social determinants of health
Lance Robertson, a former HHS leader, is encouraged by the federal response to the nation’s need to address problems such as health inequity, increased health risk and avoidable high costs for populations that are adversely affected by social determinants of health (SDoH). He sees addressing SDoH as a necessary preliminary step on the nation’s journey to achieving value in healthcare.
Why health systems may find an acute care at home strategy attractive
The potential for improved outcomes is just one important reason to consider pursuing an acute care at home strategy. Even in the absence of payment, health systems may ultimately find pursuit of such a strategy beneficial.
Provider Relief Fund update: Second reporting deadline looms as the fund nears depletion
Healthcare organizations that received Provider Relief Fund payments between July 1 and Dec. 31, 2020, have until Thursday, March 31 to report on their use of those funds.
MedPAC says 2023 hospital payments shouldn’t increase in response to COVID-19
CMS shouldn’t increase Medicare payments to hospitals for the upcoming year beyond the annual update that is based on current law, according to the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission.
Latest hospital financial and jobs data reflect an environment that remains challenging
January financial data for hospitals show the continuing toll of the COVID-19 pandemic, while February labor numbers suggest an operational recovery that could further increase expenses.
Home-based care is ripe for innovation and implementation post COVID-19
Despite the havoc the COVID-19 pandemic created for hospitals, it also created an opportunity for many important lessons learned on how care can be delivered more efficiently and cost effectively in patients’ homes.
The economics of a telehealth visit: A time-based study at Penn Medicine
Research into the costs of delivering telehealth versus in-person visits by the Department of Orthopaedics at Penn Medicine sought to answer the health systems’ questions about the long-term economic viability of telemedicine services, and to help inform their conversations with payers about how much they should appropriately be paid for the services.
The nation’s healthcare providers have a social obligation to promote cost effectiveness of health
Achieving cost effectiveness of health in the United States is a challenge not only for stakeholders within our nation’s healthcare system but also for our society, says Jeff Goldsmith, PhD, president of Health Futures Inc.
Bon Secours Mercy Health’s successful merger provides takeaway lessons learned for other healthcare organizations
Two large Catholic health systems — Bons Secours Health System and Mercy Health — initiated a merger in 2018 as a strategy for delivering more cost-effective care to underserved communities amid continued cost pressures and declining payments. Within three years, by using proactive, strategic and transparent communication as the guiding principle for their merger of equals, the combined organizations were able to far surpass the financial and integration goals they had set for the consolidation.
Cost Effectiveness of Health Report, September 2021
HFMA’s Cost Effectiveness of Health Report, sponsored by Kaufman Hall, is a monthly e-newsletter that will explore ways to ensure healthcare delivery in the United States is not only financially sustainable but also cost effective for all of its stakeholders — including health systems, physicians, health plans and patients. In this inaugural issue of the report, healthcare futurist Jeff Goldsmith shares his perspectives on the need for a focus on improving cost effectiveness of health as a societal imperative.