Healthcare Finance News | Policy and Legislation

The Obama administration released the country's first national plan to address Alzheimer's disease on Tuesday. Calling it a roadmap, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said the new national plan "addresses every aspect of what it is to confront Alzheimer's disease."

OIG pressures CMS on home health sanctions

May 14, 2012 |

As the number of home health agencies and fraud cases related to home health agencies continues to skyrocket, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) is exerting more pressure on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to fulfill an obligation that is 15 years old.

Skilled nursing facilities face $782M in cuts under sequester

May 10, 2012 |

As lawmakers debate what to do to avoid the sequestration of the Budget Control Act, those getting hit with the mandated cuts, such as defense and healthcare, are making sure Congress understands what the cuts will mean for their industries.

HHS reduces unnecessary burden on healthcare providers, saves nearly $1.1B

May 10, 2012 |

Kelsey Brimmer

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is taking new steps towards reducing unnecessary and obsolete regulations on U.S. hospitals and healthcare providers. HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebellius announced on Thursday the steps will save nearly $1.1 billion across the healthcare system in the first year and more than $5 billion over five years.

HHS to provide $11B to help states raise primary care Medicaid reimbursements

May 10, 2012 |

Chris Anderson

In a move that anticipates the increase in the number of people insured through state Medicaid programs as a result of the Affordable Care Act, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced yesterday a two-year, $11 billion program that will help states bring Medicaid payments for primary care services in line with those paid by Medicare.

RUC analysis attempts to shift debate

May 10, 2012 |

A new analysis released in the May issue of Health Affairs attempts to change the direction of the contentious debate around a perceived bias by the committee that advises the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on the relative value of physician services.

HHS announces $75M in funding for school-based health centers

May 9, 2012 |

Kelsey Brimmer

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced the availability of $75 million in funding for the construction and renovation of school-based health centers.

Payment Policy Optimization: Blending Analytics with Rules to Prevent Wasteful, Abusive and Fraudulent Healthcare Spending

December 12, 2011 |

Curtailing the massive drain caused by waste, abuse and fraud in healthcare has never been more impor¬tant. New payment models are on the horizon, including bundled payments, and greater emphasis is being placed on payment for outcomes. Given the magnitude and visibility of the problem, insurers need to avail themselves of advanced and effective means to reduce wasteful, abusive and fraudulent medical spend¬ing in the most efficient way possible. This demands a more holistic approach across the payment continuum, using technologies that not only address issues from multiple angles but also facilitate cross-organization partnership. Read more now.

Enabling Collaborative Healthcare Delivery: Care Coordination Strategies with 21st Century Technology

October 13, 2011 |

This paper, based on a roundtable session featuring John Mattison of Kaiser Permanente, identifies the building blocks of care coordination and the innovative technologies being deployed to support continuity of care by visionary health systems and the healthcare IT vendor community.

Where Information and Care Meet: Secure Mobile Healthcare Solutions that Drive Care Coordination

October 13, 2011 |

This paper, based on a roundtable session featuring Liz Johnson of Tenet Healthcare Corp., examines how leading hospitals and health systems in the country are implementing mobile point of care, sharing best practices and lessons learned, to deliver real-time, high-quality care anywhere.

The Healthcare IT Innovation Imperative: Harnessing the Power of Technology for 21st Century Care Models

October 13, 2011 |

This paper, based on a roundtable session moderated by Eric Dishman, highlights how the private and public sectors in the U.S. and Europe are unleashing the power of data in innovative ways to improve the quality of care while making the system more efficient and cost-effective.

A Guide to HIPAA Security Standards

April 1, 2010 |

Is Your Organization in Compliance With the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act? Learn best practices for quickly and easily proving compliance, while increasing operational efficiencies.

How the repeal of ACA could affect the uninsured

May 9, 2012 |

Kelly Mehler

A decay in access to medical services for American adults could continue even if President Obama is re-elected in November, according to a recent Health Affairs study.

I don't really want my $127 medical loss ratio rebate

May 1, 2012 |

James Ellis and Aaron Razavi

Under the Affordable Care Act, health plans have to issue rebates to policyholders if they don’t spend at least 80 or 85 percent of premiums on medical costs. Now that the law is in effect, about $1.3 billion is to be paid out.

Medical real estate industry 2012 trend report part 2

April 19, 2012 |

As the dynamics of healthcare continue evolving, all parties involved from hospitals, to investors, to practitioners, will be better positioned to survive if they understand the trends taking place.

Did George Washington sign a health insurance mandate?

April 16, 2012 |

According to Harvard Law professor Einer Elhauge, in 1790 the first Congress, which included 20 framers of the Constitution, passed a law mandating that shipowners purchase medical insurance for their seamen.

Wanted: A youth party to tackle healthcare

April 10, 2012 |

James Ellis and Aaron Razavi

Older people are much more likely to vote. So it’s really no wonder that spending priorities in this country are biased toward the old, or that the biggest – and completely unfunded – spending boost for the old in the form of the Medicare Part D drug benefit occurred under the notionally conservative George W. Bush and a Republican Congress.

Supreme Court, healthcare and American exceptionalism

April 5, 2012 |

Mike Stephens

The U.S. Supreme Court has completed three days of hearing oral arguments as part of the judicial process of determining the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act. With all of the controversy and media frenzy it might benefit all of us to step back and put this entire issue in some sort of perspective.

How hospitals are taking action now for healthcare reform

April 4, 2012 |

Hospitals and systems are at more financial risk than ever for care costs and quality due to the Affordable Care Act.

Repeal and do what exactly?

April 3, 2012 |

James Ellis and Aaron Razavi

Republican Senators Alexander, Johanns, Hoeven and Risch – all of whom have been state governors – unleash an attack on ObamaCare from the perspective of state budgets and argue that the law should be repealed (assuming it’s not declared unconstitutional of course).

#HITsm chat: How ACA hearing will affect ACOs

March 30, 2012 |

Kelly Mehler

In Friday's healthcare IT social media chat, sponsored by HL7 Standards, the question was proposed: If part or all of the ACA is struck down, what happens to ACOs? Here is a Twitter recap of the chatter.

Two new programs to help curb hospital readmissions

March 28, 2012 |

With Medicare spending an estimated $12 billion on avoidable readmissions, according to the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, two new programs are being introduced to help curb these costly, unneeded expenditures while improving patients’ quality of care.

P4P and HCAHPS

March 26, 2012 |

David Harlow

Financial incentives are often a reasonable way to evoke desired behavior change.

Does GOP actually want Obama to decrease health care costs?

March 23, 2012 |

USA Today reports on a Republican National Committee advertisement that lambastes President Obama for not cutting health care costs.

MedTech Media Announces the Launch of PhysBizTech

January 6, 2012 |

Online publication will provide business and technology intelligence to small and medium sized physician group practices

Community Health Systems announces acquisition of Scranton, Pennsylvania-based health system

January 3, 2012 |

Community Health Systems, Inc. (NYSE: CYH) announced today that its subsidiaries have acquired substantially all of the assets of Moses Taylor Health Care System, located in northeast Pennsylvania. The acquisition was effective January 1, 2012. Moses Taylor Health Care System includes 217-bed Moses Taylor Hospital in Scranton and 25-bed Mid-Valley Hospital in Peckville. This acquisition expands the Company’s portfolio of affiliated hospitals serving northeast Pennsylvania to eight and increases the total number of affiliated hospitals in Pennsylvania to sixteen.

IPC The Hospitalist Company acquires South Florida practice

December 8, 2011 |

IPC The Hospitalist Company, Inc. (Nasdaq:IPCM), a leading national hospitalist physician group practice company, announced today that it acquired PCA Hospitalists, Inc. Based in Port St. Lucie, Florida, the acquisition represents a further expansion for IPC in the South Florida market, where the Company already has an established presence. IPC expects to add approximately 9,000 patient encounters annually from this acquisition.

Implantable provider group contracts with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina

November 17, 2011 |

Implantable Provider Group (IPG) is pleased to announce an agreement with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, Inc. (BCBSNC) to provide implantable device management for participating providers in its extensive provider network. IPG will handle device coordination, billing, replacement, tracking and other services for participating providers in BCBSNC’s statewide ambulatory surgery center (ASC) and hospital outpatient network. Opportunities to participate in the new reimbursement model using IPG will be made available through new contracts with BCBSNC. BCBSNC serves more than 3.7 million customers in North Carolina.

Lawmakers, pharmacists rally against express Scripts-Medco merger proposal at U.S. capitol

November 4, 2011 |

National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) CEO, B. Douglas Hoey, RPh, MBA, participated in a press conference organized by the Preserve Community Pharmacy Access NOW! (PCPAN) coalition at the U.S. Capitol this morning, culminating an advocacy push that brought community pharmacists to Washington, D.C. from around the nation to urge the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to reject the proposed mega-merger of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) Express Scripts and Medco Health Solutions.

The California Endowment files amicus brief with U.S. Supreme Court on Affordable Care Act

October 31, 2011 |

Today The California Endowment filed a 'friend of the court' brief, offering relevant facts, case studies and informative research to the Supreme Court of the United States as it decides whether to hear a case regarding the Affordable Care Act, the new federal health care law. The filing was prepared by California Endowment counsel Kathleen M. Sullivan, one of the nation's preeminent appellate litigators at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP.

CryoLife closes $20M credit facility with GE Capital, Healthcare Financial Services

October 31, 2011 |

CryoLife, Inc. (NYSE: CRY), a leading tissue processing and medical device Company focused on cardiac and vascular surgery, announced it has entered into a credit facility with GE Capital, Healthcare Financial Services for up to $20 million in revolving credit for working capital, acquisitions and other corporate purposes. The credit agreement expands upon the Company's borrowing capacity from its previous facility of $15 million and expires in October 2014, at which time the outstanding principal balance will be due.

Healthcare’s role in deficit reduction—guiding principles

October 27, 2011 |

Cutting federal healthcare spending over the next 10 years will be particularly challenging for the congressional super committee charged with proposing $1.2 trillion in additional deficit reduction by Thanksgiving, according to a perspective by researchers at the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC) published online today in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Proposals to cut Medicare funds for SNF bad debt ignore crucial fact

October 25, 2011 |

The Obama Administration's proposal to cut Medicare bad debt payments for skilled nursing facility (SNF) care is "unfair and unsustainable," the Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care said today. According to the Alliance, 85 percent of SNF bad debt is unrecoverable because it stems from Medicaid's inability or unwillingness to pay Medicare co-payments for dual eligible patients.

Healthcare industry faces unprecedented change in hospital landscape: Aon Risk Solutions

October 19, 2011 |

It is estimated that 50 to 60 percent of physicians and hospitals are exploring ways to team up, according to a recent article in The New York Times. Aon Risk Solutions, the global risk management business of Aon Corporation (NYSE: AON), expects this trend to lead to significant collaborative activity, including mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures and additional forms as hospitals and health care systems across the U.S. look to deliver high-quality care while reducing unnecessary expenses.

AdCare Health Systems selects Remedi SeniorCare for long-term care pharmacy solutions

October 19, 2011 |

Linda Fotheringill

Ohio-based AdCare Health Systems, Inc. (NYSE Amex: ADK) has selected Remedi SeniorCare®, one of the nation's largest institutional pharmacy companies, to provide comprehensive pharmacy and consulting services for AdCare's facilities that deliver long-term care to approximately 443 residents in the Ohio region.

U.S. HealthWorks acquires 11 Nashville-area medical centers

October 18, 2011 |