Navigating toward successful contract negotiations with health plans
A group of healthcare leaders discuss various tactics they are using to negotiate better rates with payers and ensure payers’ commitment to accurate, timely payment.
People: Atlantic General and BSMH announce CFO transitions
Atlantic General Hospital and Health System in Berlin, Md., has hired James Kanuch, CHFP, MBA, as vice president of finance and CFO. Kanuch, a member of HFMA’s Maryland Chapter, brings 30 years of financial and operational experience to the new role. Most recently, he served as senior vice president of finance at Allegheny Health Network…
Jill Geisler: Being positive and solving problems are not mutually exclusive
We want our leaders to be positive forces for good. But what happens when they prefer to deal with only the positive aspects of the job and avoid the negative? An hfm reader recently suggested this scenario might be worth exploring in a column. Indeed, it is. The reader described working with two nonprofit leaders…
FTC challenge adds to the strain on the hospital-based anesthesiology workforce
A Federal Trade Commission (FTC) challenge to the purchase of a major anesthesia provider, after a rocky couple of years for anesthesia providers, has created an even murkier outlook for hospital-based anesthesia services. The FTC’s suit, filed in September against U.S. Anesthesia Partners, Inc. (USAP) and the private equity firm Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe,…
Geeta Nayyar: Healthcare industry needs to take charge in refuting misinformation
In the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, Geeta Nayyar, MD, MBA, found herself captivated by the misinformation — and disinformation — spewed across social media. People were falling prey to lies, conspiracy theories and snake-oil hucksters, and in some cases, the bad advice killed them. The environment reminded her of another deadly misinformation crisis…
Not-for-profit health systems need a new enterprise strategy
Based on findings of recent original research, the current financial performance of not-for-profit (NFP) health systems raises concerns over their long-term financial viability. The research findings underscore the need for NFP health system leaders to reconceptualize their organization as comprising six strategic business units (SBUs) and then manage each in terms of competitiveness. Research findings…
Shawn Stack: The value of revisiting policies and processes for financial assistance
The charity care processes adopted by healthcare providers have attracted criticism in media stories focusing on the high cost of care. On a recent episode of HFMA’s “Voices in Healthcare Finance” podcast, HFMA Policy Director Shawn Stack discussed the value of revisiting financial assistance policies and processes. Below is an excerpt from the interview. Erika…
Dennis Dahlen: It’s time to reflect
From Nashville to Arizona, Pennsylvania to Puerto Rico, the past year gave me a unique opportunity to see HFMA in action at the chapter level and to partner with HFMA’s National team to position the Association for even greater things ahead. I’ve been blessed to share my year as National Chair with HFMA President and…
Tennessee Chapter hosts a unique March Madness watch party
For HFMA’s Tennessee Chapter, the NCAA Tournament is cause for a special event. “Our March Madness watch party is purely an entertainment and networking event,” said Chase Wunder, director of business development at Wakefield & Associates in Knoxville, Tenn., and current Tennessee Chapter president. “It allows folks to sneak out of work a little early…
Why the Medicare physician fee schedule is sheer madness
Amid the complexities of U.S. healthcare, there is probably no construct that’s more byzantine than the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) — the program’s elaborate system of paying physicians and other clinicians (including nurse practitioners, physician assistants and clinical psychologists) for more than 10,000 medical services.a In 2022, the schedule drove about $71.2 billion in…