Deborah Filipek
About the Author
Deborah Filipek is a senior editor at HFMA, with a broad background as a newspaper reporter and magazine editor. Having been with the HFMA for six years, she plays a central role for the Association in ensuring hfm magazine and website content is clean, clear and to-the-point.
Latest Work
Healthcare News of Note: 54% of patients do not care whether they see a corporate or independent primary care provider, but more prefer independent practices, survey says
Over the past few weeks, I have found these industry news stories that should be of interest to healthcare finance professionals. 1. 38% of survey respondents prefer seeing an independent practice provider while 8% prefer corporate providers Although more than half of patients (54%) “have no preference between an independently owned or a corporate medical…
Improved cost effectiveness is a common theme among hfm’s 2022-2023 Best Article Award winners
HFMA is pleased to recognize three articles published in hfm as the fiscal year 2022-23 winners of the Helen Yerger/L. Vann Seawell Best Article Award for outstanding editorial achievement. The articles share a focus on ways healthcare organizations can improve cost effectiveness. The award-winning articles were selected by a panel of five leaders in the…
Healthcare News of Note: Latino, Black and Asian people ‘significantly more likely’ to enroll in Medicare Advantage
Over the past few weeks, I have found these industry news stories that should be of interest to healthcare finance professionals. 1. MA and FFS Medicare program enrollees report similar care quality, but demographic differences are evident Although quality of care reported “is similar” among enrollees in Medicare Advantage (MA) and fee-for-service (FFS) Medicare, demographic…
Healthcare News of Note: DOL sues UnitedHealth Group subsidiary for claim denials
The U.S. Department of Labor recently sued UMR Inc., the nation’s largest third-party healthcare claims administrator, for denials involving emergency department services and urinary drug screening. Twenty-two of U.S. News & World Report’s Best Hospitals also made the publication’s honor roll, which recognizes hospitals for demonstrating exceptional breadth of excellence across clinical specialties. Substantial resources…
Healthcare News of Note: 10 drugs account for a large share of Medicare Part D spending
In total, Part D gross spending rose from $166 billion in 2018 to $216 billion in 2021. In 2023, customer personal identifiable information costs organizations $183 per record and employee PII costs $181 per record. Average length across all clinical notes increased 8.1%, from 4,628 characters in May 2020 to 5,002 characters in April 2023. …
Healthcare News of Note: Healthcare expenditures decrease seen with shared patient-clinician decision-making and racial or ethnic concordance
Shared decision-making plays an imperative role in reducing health expenditures by more closely aligning treatment decisions with patient preferences and values. Extreme heat events could be responsible for $1 billion in healthcare costs each summer in the United States, according to a Virginia Commonwealth University study. The American Hospital Association urged the Senate HELP Committee…
Honor Roll: HFMA certifications were awarded to 1,883 members in Q2
HFMA offers eight certifications for members to validate their expertise and demonstrate their commitment to the profession. The HFMA certifications are as follows: Certified Healthcare Financial Professional (CHFP), Certified Revenue Cycle Representative (CRCR), Certified Revenue Cycle Representative (CRCR) – GCC, Certified Specialist Accounting and Finance (CSAF), Certified Specialist Business Intelligence (CSBI), Certified Specialist Physician Practice…
Healthcare News of Note: Healthcare organizations continue to deal with turnover and workforce shortages
Over the past few weeks, I have found these industry news stories that should be of interest to healthcare finance professionals. 1. Physicians who say they are very likely to leave their current job are 15 times more likely to do so Healthcare organizations continue to deal with employee turnover and workforce shortages, according…
Healthcare News of Note: What were the most-read blogs during the first half of 2023?
The top Healthcare News of Note blog posts for the first six months of the year were a mixed bag in terms of topics, but all of them grabbed the most reader attention based on number of clicks: Seven hospitals were recognized for elevating nursing excellence and improving patient outcomes with Press Ganey’s National Database…
Healthcare News of Note: How Americans and healthcare organizations could benefit from a focus on health span versus life span
Even though the average life span is 77.9 years in the U.S., Deloitte calculated that Americans are living just 65.9 years, or 85% of their years, in good health. Eleven member institutions, organizations and individuals supported the Association of American Medical Colleges’ statement on the SCOTUS decision on race-conscious admissions. Health spending through 2031 is expected…