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
FY22 rule for the Inpatient Prospective Payment System finalizes a payment increase and key policy updates
The base payment increase for hospital inpatient services in FY22 will be 2.5%, according to a final rule issued by CMS.
Congress opts not to use Provider Relief Fund allocations as an infrastructure funding source
Earlier reports indicated that Provider Relief Fund money would be used to help pay for the pending bipartisan infrastructure bill, but the legislative text includes no such language.
Latest hospital readmissions data highlight the challenges posed by septicemia
For all diagnoses across payers, researchers reported a 30-day readmission rate of 14% and an average cost per readmission of $15,200.
Hospital-at-home programs are gaining traction and have well-documented benefits, experts say
A Medicare waiver issued in late 2020 has spurred more health systems to implement home-care programs for acute conditions.
Study: In price negotiations with hospitals, self-insured employers lack leverage
The vast difference in market power between hospitals and employers leaves the latter group with little recourse in negotiations, according to a new study.
ACO leaders support new bill designed to boost participation in value-based payment
Accountable care organizations stand to benefit from a new bill that would increase investment funding and make changes to federal ACO programs, several executives said.
Fitch describes the heightened risk posed by cyberattacks on not-for-profit hospitals
Cyberattacks on NFP hospitals increased substantially during the COVID-19 pandemic and show no signs of abating, Fitch says.
HFMA’s Annual Conference virtual preview offers a glimpse of what’s coming in November
The three-hour virtual preview of the Annual Conference, including a look at the educational tracks, key speakers and other attractions, is available on-demand.
Study establishes a link between surges in COVID-19 cases and risk of mortality at hospitals
Statistical analysis shows nearly a quarter of COVID-19 deaths during the first six months of the pandemic could be ascribed to high caseloads at hospitals.
In 2022 OPPS rule, CMS plans to reinstate policies pertaining to the inpatient-only and ASC covered-procedures lists
The 2022 proposed rule for the Outpatient Prospective Payment System would reverse 2021 policies that began to phase out the inpatient-only list of procedures and expand the covered-procedures list for ambulatory surgical centers.