Healthcare News of Note: CVS finalizes purchases of Signify Health, Oak Street Health, moving into home healthcare and primary care
CVS Health has completed the acquisitions of Signify Health and Oak Street Health, expanding its efforts to implement a value-based payment ecosystem focused on holistic care. Chatbot responses to patient’s questions were preferred over physician responses, earning higher rankings from evaluators for both quality and empathy, according to a recent study. Increasing rates of depression,…
How the patient financial experience impacts loyalty
Healthcare organization leaders from across the country share insight on creating patient financial experiences that drive payment while protecting patient retention in this roundtable.
Gail Wilensky: No Surprises Act — where things stand after 16 months
Few areas of concern within our nation’s healthcare system have caused patients, their families and caregivers more consternation than surprise medical bills. Most of the new protections under the 2020 No Surprises Act became effective on Jan. 1, 2022. Last August, the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and Treasury released a statement providing…
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…
Healthcare Blame Game, the podcast: First episode is here!
The much-anticipated pilot episode of the “Healthcare Blame Game” podcast is now live and available to HFMA members. In this episode, HFMA Chief Content Executive Brad Dennison and Executive Producer Erika Grotto question the methodology and narrative of a recent Kaiser Health News investigation.
CMS and other stakeholders take steps to improve prior authorization in Medicare Advantage and beyond
Several recent developments point to an industrywide effort to ease the burden of prior authorization. Most notably, CMS on April 5 finalized a rule that includes provisions designed to improve prior authorization in Medicare Advantage (MA) starting with the 2024 plan year. The rule addresses a few aspects of prior authorization, among them the way…
Reports on patient safety indicate progress, challenges and a need to focus on pediatric mental health
Recent reports add context to the issue of patient safety in hospitals and health systems. ECRI released a report that ranks the pediatric mental health crisis as the No. 1 patient safety issue in healthcare. The report cites a JAMA study that found increases of 29% in anxiety and 27% in depression between 2016 and…
Healthcare News of Note: Most board members of the nation’s top hospitals work in finance or business
Less than 15% of board members at a sampling of the nation’s top hospitals are health professionals, while 56% work in finance or business. Since 2014, the number of medically disenfranchised people in the U.S. nearly doubled from 56 million to over 100 million, causing stress for providers and lower rates of immunization and rising…
How to determine appropriate patient status and navigate observation-level care
The financial implications of ensuring appropriate patient status throughout a hospital stay are substantial, so it is in organizations’ interest to enhance the process.
The media blame game regarding patient financial conversations
Brad Dennison, HFMA chief content executive, discusses the March hfm cover story about patient-friendly payment and what some media organizations get wrong.