Financial Sustainability Report: August 2021

The August 2021 issue of the Financial Sustainability Report, sponsored by Kaufman Hall, explores the impacts of COVID-19 on hospital cost reporting and financial statements, and why a hospital’s future payment levels may depend on its due diligence around these processes today.

Cost Reports and Financials during COVID-19

Cost reporting in the time of COVID-19 could have an impact on hospital payment
By K. Michael Nichols, FHFMA, CPA
The changes due to the COVID-19 pandemic that hospitals must report in their annual cost reports will be pervasive throughout the reported data. Given that CMS and some state agencies use cost reports i9nformation to establish future rates, it is critical that hospitals exercise heightened due diligence in preparing their cost reports throughout the public health emergency.

COVID-19 requires intensified due diligence to understand its impact on the financial performance of health systems
By Tejash Lodhavia
Analyzing a health system’s financial performance is critical when making business decisions for the organization, but performing such an analysis is far from being straightforward for 2020 and 2021.

Physician Performance

Expense increases offset physician practice productivity and revenue gains
Sponsored by Kaufman Hall
By Matthew Bates
Physician groups across the country saw productivity and revenue improvements in the second quarter of 2021 compared with both the same period in 2020 and pre-pandemic levels seen in Q4 2019, according to Kaufman Hall’s latest Physician Flash Report. However, significant increases in expenses and continued high levels of physician investment compared with the pre-pandemic period remain areas of concern.

Revenue Cycle: Patient Access

How to engage with patients where they are by balancing automation with the human touch  
By Day Egusquiza
As provider organizations develop sophisticated automated systems, they should also make sure patients always have an opportunity to talk with a real person in the organization, because patients tend to be drawn to organizations where they feel a personal connection. Providers should address this patient need by having dedicated staff whose role is to personally engage with patients.