Financial Sustainability Report: July 2020

The July issue of the Financial Sustainability Report, sponsored by Kaufman Hall, offers healthcare finance leaders insights that can help them prepare their organizations for the future “new normal” that follows the COVID-19 pandemic.

Value-based contracting

How to manage risk-based payment in the era of the global pandemic
By Thomas Persichetti, FCA, ASA, MAAA
To succeed with risk-based contracts through the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond, healthcare organizations require analytic capabilities for modeling the revenue impact of the crisis through all its phases.

Cost management

Sepsis poses a cost-containment challenge in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic
By David Kulick, MPH, Shailja Vaghela, MPH, and Erin Bina
The average full marginal loss for a U.S. hospital’s treatment of sepsis amounts to as much as $34 million annually, on average, making it one of the highest cost-containment challenges in the nation’s hospitals – one that has been exacerbated by COVID-19.

Ambulatory care and telehealth

Rightsizing the Ambulatory Real Estate Footprint for a New Healthcare Environment
Sponsored by Kaufman Hall
By Mark Grube, Robert Turner, Matt Robbins and Lauren Clementi
The COVID-19 crisis has accelerated the shift from inpatient and hospital-based services to the ambulatory and virtual setting, increasing the demand for local access to higher-acuity ambulatory services. As health systems assess the potential impact of these changes, they should also assess the future viability of their current ambulatory real estate footprint.

How to leverage the telemedicine surge to create a profitable telehealth model
By Lucy Zielinski and Daniel J. Marino
The dramatic surge in telehealth utilization during the COVID-19 pandemic may be a tipping point for the industry. Many healthcare leaders now view telehealth as a viable strategy for improving patient access, reducing costs and even improving patient outcomes.

Healthcare finance workforce

7 tips for effectively managing a remote healthcare finance team
By Martin Moll
Healthcare organizations that have long-standing experience in managing remote accounting teams offer key lessons learned for organizations that have been prompted by COVID-19 to adopt this workforce strategy.

Integration and automation

Hospitals need integration, automation for value continuity through the COVID-19 crisis
By Matt Houston
Following the COVID-19 crisis, hospitals’ success will hinge on the extent to which they can fully automate business processes to address key priorities, including preserving cash on hand, reducing risk, and safeguarding against future financial volatility from a second wave or a future pandemic.

Regulatory issues

FY 2021 IPPS Proposed Rule Comment Letter: Part 2 – DSH, Bad Debt, PAC Transfer, and Stem Cell Acquisition Costs
Read HFMA’s comment letter to CMS on the specific proposals contained in the FY 2021 IPPS proposed rule.