News Briefs: Financial and operational pressures continue for hospitals amid scattered positive signs
Recent financial data for the hospital industry illustrate continuing challenges even as some trends improve. Fitch Ratings released an analysis in early March that offers scant reason for optimism. Titled “Early NFP hospital medians show expected deterioration; will worsen,” it draws on data from hospitals with earlier 2022 financial year-ends. Those numbers show “materially weaker…
PatientRightsAdvocate.org misinterprets CMS rules in low estimate of hospital price transparency compliance
In February, PatientRightsAdvocate.org (PRA) published its Fourth Semi-Annual Hospital Price Transparency Report, which states that only 24.5% of hospitals are compliant with federal price transparency regulations. This is a vast contradiction of CMS’s own compliance findings, which show 70% overall compliance during the same timeframe, as published in a Health Affairs blog on Feb. 14.…
Affordability of healthcare is not enhanced when providers form health systems, studies find
The efficiencies gained when providers operate as a health system don’t always translate to care that is more cost-effective, according to two recently published JAMA studies on pricing. In one study, researchers with Harvard Medical School and the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) examined 2018 data from various sources, including CMS administrative data, IRS…
Joe Fifer: Healthcare leaders require the courage to put consumers first
It takes courage to be among the first healthcare organizations to do something totally new. I had that in mind when I chose “courage in leadership” as my theme for my 2006-07 term as HFMA’s board chair. The need for courage is perhaps most readily apparent on the clinical side of healthcare because human lives…
Hospital price transparency update: Regulatory enforcement soon could become stricter, CMS leaders say
Although nothing is official, CMS leaders indicate enforcement of hospital price transparency regulations is set to become more stringent. For an article published in Health Affairs, the Center for Medicare’s Meena Seshamani, MD, PhD, director, and Douglas Jacobs, MD, chief transformation officer, touted progress that has been made since the rules took effect Jan. 1,…
Healthcare News of Note: What healthcare sector innovations are consumers most excited about?
Some 48% of healthcare consumers surveyed said improved insight into how much care would cost was the No. 1 item they were excited about when it came to innovation in healthcare. Employers can expect an increase of more than 20,000% in adolescent mental health telehealth costs, according to a study showing telehealth appointments cost an…
Beyond the News: Nick and Shawn discuss No Surprises, disruptors and everything else that made healthcare industry headlines in 2022
HFMA Senior Editor Nick Hut and HFMA Policy Director Shawn Stack discuss the top stories of 2022 in this special year-end episode.
How healthcare organizations are navigating the era of price transparency
In this roundtable, healthcare leaders from across the nation discuss how their health systems are navigating regulations around price transparency, common challenges and the effect on their organizations.
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…
HFMA’s virtual revenue cycle and price transparency series focuses on helping health systems re-engage consumers and improve financial performance
Beginning March 1, healthcare finance professionals can participate in several educational sessions and peer-to-peer discussions by enrolling in HFMA's virtual revenue cycle and price transparency workshop.