How to re-engage hospitalists, rebuild care teams and improve LOS in the post-COVID environment
Healthcare teams are facing disrupted communication pathways and relationships due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to increased length of stay (LOS) and financial performance issues, but a back-to-basics approach with hospitalists leading care team rebuilding can help overcome these challenges.
Ken Perez: An assessment of the health policies of Kamala Harris and Donald Trump
The 2024 presidential election features a shift in policy position by Democratic Party candidate Kamala Harris, who has distanced herself from her previous advocacy of Medicare for All, while Republican Party candidate Donald Trump appears less intent on repealing the Affordable Care Act.
Hospitals will get only a small bump in Medicare inpatient payments for FY25
Hospital representatives were less than excited about the rate update in Medicare’s FY25 final rule for inpatient care and long-term care hospitals. Published Aug. 1, the rule includes a 2.9% rate increase for acute care hospitals in the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1. The increase is derived from a 3.4% hike in the market…
As providers seek resolution of continuing Change Healthcare issues, UnitedHealth Group reports strong financials
The aftermath of the Change Healthcare cyberattack affected the second-quarter financials of parent company UnitedHealth Group (UHG), but not to the point of hindering the company’s continued “diversified and durable growth,” CEO Andrew Witty said during a recent investor call. Q2 revenues increased by 6% year-over-year, while profits dropped by 5.5% amid costs stemming from…
FTC report levies strong criticism at the business practices of pharmacy benefit managers
Vertical integration by pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), including with providers, is one reason to be concerned about the excessive reach of PBMs in the healthcare industry, according to an interim staff report issued this month by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). “Due to decades of mergers and acquisitions, the three largest PBMs now manage nearly…
Medicare’s proposed outpatient payment update for 2025 doesn’t keep pace with hospital costs, advocates say
Note: Additional coverage of the proposed rule can be found here. Hospital advocates expressed dissatisfaction with the payment update in Medicare’s 2025 proposed rule for hospital outpatient care and ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs). CMS proposes to increase the Medicare rate for outpatient services and ASCs by 2.6%, resulting from a 3% jump in the market…
Healthcare providers face Medicare payment-rate penalties for information blocking under new rule
Healthcare providers will receive a lower Medicare payment update if they are deemed to have engaged in information blocking, according to a final rule from HHS and CMS. For hospitals, a violation will leave the organization noncompliant with the Promoting Interoperability Program, meaning it would lose out on three-quarters of the annual market-basket update for…
Annual Conference Day 1: HFMA, AHA leaders hold forth on the state of the healthcare industry
HFMA’s 2024 Annual Conference began Monday afternoon with HFMA’s Ann Jordan and the American Hospital Association’s Rick Pollack rallying attendees to address the profound challenges and opportunities facing the industry. To start, Jordan, HFMA’s president and CEO, highlighted the conference theme, “A New Frontier in Health.” Frontier is “an exciting and unsettling word that really…
Saying goodbye to the BMI
In this episode, Dr. Holly Ann Russell, an associate professor of family medicine at the University of Rochester Medical Center and medical director for the Center of Community Health and Prevention, discusses why providers should stop using the Body Mass Index as a health measure and why weighing patients at every visit is unnecessary.
Hospitals can bring their case on disproportionate share hospital payments to the Supreme Court
The Supreme Court granted hospitals’ request that it hear their appeal about the formula for determining Medicare disproportionate share hospital (DSH) payments, landing the case on the docket for the 2024-25 term. More than 200 hospitals are plaintiffs in the case. A federal district court ruled for HHS and against the hospitals in 2022, and…