November 2021

Cover Story
Hospital-at-home care promises to reshape healthcare delivery in the United States
Two leaders of health system hospital-at-home programs describe how the acute hospital care at home model represents an important change in how our nation approaches healthcare delivery, because it has been shown to yield improved care outcomes and greater patient satisfaction.
Features
Bon Secours Mercy Health’s successful merger provides takeaway lessons 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.
ENPR: A metric for comparing alternative and top-line revenue strategies to enhance strategic growth
Health system CFOs today should be actively guiding their organizations toward strategic investments in alternative revenue sources that can strengthen the bottom line. An effective and relatable metric for evaluating such investments is equivalent net patient revenue (ENPR).
Rising to the moment: Addressing COVID-19’s challenges by advancing data interoperability
Improved interoperability in healthcare data exchange has been one byproduct of the COVID-19 pandemic that may ultimately help improve the delivery of care — as well as its cost effectiveness — in the United States.
Columns
Addressing today’s healthcare challenges requires the right data
HFMA National Chair Tammie Jackson discusses why healthcare organizations must ensure they are using the right data when seeking to address the social determinants of health.
Ken Perez: Healthcare plays a pivotal role in the fate of the Democrats' social spending bill
Characterized by some as the centerpiece of President Joe Biden’s agenda, the Democrats’ $3.5 trillion budget plan is still very much a work in progress.
Jill Geisler: 6 things leaders can do to foster civility in the workplace
Times are turbulent, and people often feel empowered to express their opinions, even in negative ways. Jill Geisler shares things leaders can do to promote civility in the workplace and keep teams working well together.
Following the COVID-19 liquidity crisis, lines of credit should get a fresh look
Healthcare organizations’ finance and treasury leaders should consider the role of a line of credit as part of a global resource allocation effort.
Healthcare’s top area of vulnerability: cost effectiveness
HFMA President and CEO Joe Fifer discusses some of the ways that healthcare provider organizations are vulnerable to disruption.
Departments
Chapter ‘imagined amazing’ and produced a podcast
HFMA’s Oregon Chapter produces a regular podcast to keep healthcare finance professionals connected to the Chapter and informed of current healthcare industry issues.
HFMA members Bell and Coffin promoted to top positions at HRG
HRG has appointed HFMA members Mark Bell and Jason Coffin as CFO and COO, respectively. Five other HFMA members have been named as new CFOs for healthcare facilities around the country.
Supplements
First American – Providing funding solutions exclusively for healthcare organizations
Healthcare organizations can acquire leading-edge equipment and stay updated with the latest technology with one company’s funding solutions.
Waystar simplifies existing revenue cycle systems for more effective payment
With the industry’s largest SaaS RCM platform, one company surrounds and supplements health systems’ existing systems to simplify healthcare payments.
Revamping prior authorization: How AI and automation could boost care and revenue
Prior authorization is the most time-consuming transaction for medical providers, taking up to an hour to complete manually. Find out how providers and health plans can save up to $417 million annually be automating prior authorizations.
Currance: Transforming revenue cycle outcomes using AI technology
One company’s AI technology solution helps revenue cycle teams with tools to deliver 2% to 6% additional earned revenue to healthcare systems’ bottom line.
Revenue cycle innovation: How automation can mitigate the financial impact of COVID-19
These four tips will help hospital financial leaders lessen the economic impact of COVID-19 now and in the future: Build and retain a core revenue cycle team, contain labor costs, redeploy talent more effectively and enhance revenue integrity.