A taxing opportunity for brave nonprofit health systems
Smart nonprofit health systems should pay their local, state and federal taxes as though they were for-profit companies. You did just read that. I contend that it makes business sense for leading nonprofit health systems to pony up and pay taxes. In the long run, health systems that start paying taxes will create a new…
3 ways healthcare providers should vet potential private equity partners
As their medical practices returned to near-normal operations recently, more than two years after COVID-19 restrictions were first imposed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), some practice owners found themselves taking stock of their livelihoods and future prospects. The pandemic caused many of them — including physician groups and health systems —…
News Briefs: TMA returns to court over concerns about the No Surprises Act’s arbitration process
The Texas Medical Association has gone to court for a second time in less than a year over the independent dispute resolution process that’s part of the No Surprises Act.
Joe Fifer: Adopting a health equity lens
This year, we dedicated HFMA’s annual Thought Leadership Retreat to the topic of health equity. That topic could be viewed as a bit of a departure for HFMA, given that our Association is focused on finance. But I strongly believe, along with the majority of our retreat participants, that healthcare stakeholders must use a health…
Why it can be a good idea for hospitals to stand up to government policy
Healthcare finance executives in the United States can take a lesson from an eye-opening book by Ted Giovanis, FHFMA, MBA, Beyond fear: How I fought the feds for six years — and won. In this book, Giovanis, a long-standing member of HFMA’s Maryland Chapter, chronicles how he identified an error in an arcane Medicare formula…
Healthcare’s cybersecurity stakes reach alarming levels
The threats to U.S. healthcare organizations from cyberattacks were already on the rise before COVID-19. But they have grown dramatically as a result of the pandemic. Major contributors to rising risk were the rush to respond to the need for telemedicine services and the shift of many staff to remote workplaces. “Hospitals had to stand…
David Johnson: Rewiring healthcare’s smartest professionals (Hint: It’s not physicians)
I won’t keep you in suspense. Healthcare’s smartest professionals are the tens of thousands of individuals who populate its revenue cycle operations. Revenue cycle professionals determine how much payers fork out and how much providers receive for healthcare treatments. They constitute the beating heart of the nation’s transactional healthcare system. Their ingenuity knows no bounds.…
When it comes to healthcare price transparency regulations, questions abound
A new era for healthcare price transparency has been underway for almost two years, but the potential impact remains murky. Price transparency requirements for hospitals were drafted by CMS during the Trump administration and went into effect Jan. 1, 2021. A companion rule for health plans was set to begin a year later, but the…
Aaron Crane: Poker lessons for healthcare finance
HFMA Chair Aaron Crane believes the game of poker provides valuable lessons for healthcare finance professionals navigating the current industry environment.
Hilda Dalfonso assumes new CFO position
HFMA members Hilda Dalfonso, Jennifer Doll, Kim Hodgkinson and Russ Ranallo were recently named to new healthcare system CFO positions.