Nick Hut
About the Author
Nick Hut is a former newspaper reporter with more than a decade of experience at HFMA. His HFMA Daily reporting is considered a top benefit of membership as members have come to rely on Hut’s daily insights on policy, legal and business developments. He has been at the forefront of major industry news, garnering a following from national media. Nick has earned multiple national awards, including two first-place honors in 2024 from the American Society of Business Publication Editors for excellence in analysis and reporting.
Latest Work
The COVID-19-induced surge in healthcare labor costs is testing hospitals and health systems
Struggles with the pandemic’s financial impact on the healthcare workforce leave few alternatives besides innovation, say industry experts and leaders on the front lines.
Medicaid expansion doesn’t appear to bolster finances or operations at critical access hospitals, study finds
Changes in operating margin, staffing ratios and quality metrics didn’t hinge on whether a critical access hospital was in a state that had expanded Medicaid.
Healthcare industry leaders share ideas with CMMI for improving value-based payment models, with benchmarking a top concern
During a recent call with healthcare stakeholders, leaders with the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation heard various ideas for improving value-based payment models.
Court injunction stops federal COVID-19 vaccine mandate for healthcare workers from being implemented as scheduled
A federal judge has halted implementation of a new rule that would require all on-site staff in hospitals and most other healthcare settings to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
CMS makes templates available to help with aspects of the new surprise billing regulations
CMS has published templates and resources that can guide healthcare providers in implementing some of the surprise-billing requirements that take effect in January.
10 states file lawsuit to halt CMS’s new rule requiring healthcare staff to be vaccinated
The suit says CMS didn’t have a good rationale for implementing the mandate and failed to follow required procedures for handing down such regulations.
News Briefs: Federal vaccination requirements finalized for hospitals and most other healthcare settings
If a hospital’s staff aren’t fully vaccinated by Jan. 4, the organization will be deemed noncompliant with Medicare and Medicaid regulations, according to a new federal rule.
Provider Relief Fund updates: First reporting deadline is imminent, and new distributions have been sent to rural providers
Providers have until Nov. 30 to report on their use of distributions received from the Provider Relief Fund during the first several months of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Healthcare provisions in massive legislation could improve care access but also reduce federal funding for some hospitals
In pending legislation, reductions to disproportionate share hospital payments would be used to subsidize commercial insurance for low-income residents of states that haven’t expanded Medicaid.
CMS cancels regulations that would ensure coverage of breakthrough medical devices, but new legislation could fill the void
Citing patient safety concerns among other issues, CMS formally canceled a Trump administration rule that would have required Medicare to cover breakthrough medical devices.