What to expect when a consultant call-in report is required
Amid today’s difficult operating environment, some organizations face the prospect of breaching covenants in their master trust indenture (MTI) or bank loan documents, particularly covenant requirements for debt service coverage or days cash on hand. In the event of a breach, management is typically required to hire an independent consultant to identify areas for financial…
4 points healthcare leaders should consider in their cyberinsurance calculus
In spring of 2023, two ransomware groups, Cl0p (or CLOP, per the U.S. Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Agency) and LockBit, attacked 130 organizations in the United States, many of them in healthcare.a Fortunately for healthcare organizations with cybersecurity insurance, those breaches would have been eligible for coverage. Yet the same may not have been true for…
Healthcare News of Note: 3 factors increase the likelihood that a physician has been sued
Some46.8% of physicians over the age of 54 report they have been sued compared to 9.5% of physicians under the age of 40. The revenue cycle management segment accounted for the largest revenue share in the global healthcare finance solutions market in 2022. Greater representation of Black primary care physicians (PCPs) in the PCP workforce…
Robert Turner: Avoiding a bond covenant default takes aggressive action from a health system borrower
Not-for-profit hospitals and health systems have faced an increasingly difficult operating environment since inflation began to grow in mid-2021. Last year was particularly hard, beginning with a new wave of COVID-19 infections caused by the omicron variant, and followed by mounting expenses, staffing shortages, rising interest rates and investment losses. As a result, Kaufman Hall…
David Johnson: Why healthcare’s cupboard is bare — its funding gravy train has run out of steam
Gravy train is a railroad term that originated in the early 1900s. It described a well-paid train run that didn’t require much effort. In modern parlance, speakers use it to describe easy-to-do tasks and cushy situations. The problem with gravy trains is that riding them too long engenders lazy, sloppy and wasteful behaviors. New York…
Bank failures highlight importance of measuring counterparty risk
The recent failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank have focused attention on an often-overlooked issue: bank counterparty risk. From a treasurer’s perspective, banks are much more than account-holding institutions. They provide an array of critical payment and collection services, and the impact of losing access to these services cannot be overstated. The Federal…
Healthcare M&A: Are you prepared for the pitfalls?
Leaders of hospitals and health systems whose organizations are embarking on a merger or acquisition should be prepared to avoid the many potential pitfalls associated with such an strategic venture.
Healthcare News of Note: More Office for Civil Rights funding could boost HIPAA enforcement
Healthcare News of Note for healthcare finance professionals is a roundup of recent news articles: Cybercrime against healthcare organizations overwhelms the federal Office for Civil Rights, the cost of health inequities could reach $1 trillion, and primary care physicians need more hours in the day to provide recommended care.
Paul Keckley: Inflation’s impact on healthcare: 5 takeaways
For healthcare finance professionals, healthcare inflation requires intensified efforts to address five concerns: increased bad debt, increased operating costs, heightened public scrutiny of pricing policies and executive compensation, increased competition by privately funded competitors offering low-cost solutions and growth of “Occupy Healthcare” movements.
5 ways the ERM playbook for health systems is due for a rewrite
Business risk for health systems has continued to evolve amid huge changes affecting the industry, including those driven by COVID-19. Health system leaders should respond by revisiting their approach to enterprise risk management (ERM) to focus on five areas of risk where their ability to deliver healthcare cost effectively could be compromised: Labor shortages, capital planning amid ongoing change, energy consumption, cyber security and price transparency.