Hospitals embrace reform, worry shutdown will hurt care

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October 2, 2013 | By Alicia Caramenico Various hospitals groups have expressed disappointment with Congress for not reaching an agreement on funding for healthcare reform and are concerned about how the government shutdown will affect care. With disrupted National Institutes of Health funding to support medical research and discontinued payments for physician training at children’s hospitals,… Read more »

Hospitalizations to decline under ACA; impact on outcomes murky

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October 13, 2013 | By Julie Bird, Fierce Healthcare The Affordable Care act will reduce the number of Medicare patients being hospitalized, saving the federal government money, a study published in the October issue of Health Affairs concludes. What’s uncertain is how lower utilization will affect care quality, say the researchers, who note the “implications… Read more »

5 Best Practices for a Successful Transition to Value-Based Payments

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Written by Helen Adamopoulos, Beckers Hospital Review, October 11, 2013 As hospitals and health systems move from fee-for-service reimbursement to value-based payments, various obstacles and challenges can stand in the way of a successful transition. A recent Robert Wood Johnson Foundation report authored by consulting firm Bailit Health Purchasing identified numerous challenges organizations can face during… Read more »

Moody’s: Health Insurance Exchange Uncertainties Hurt Nonprofit Hospitals

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Written by Bob Herman, October 14, 2013 As the health insurance exchanges continue to ramp up enrollment of newly insured Americans, the uncertainties surrounding exchange plan reimbursement are likely to increase pressure on the revenues of nonprofit hospitals, according to a report from Moody’s Investors Service. The exchanges went live about two weeks ago, despite the… Read more »

New Seat in the Hospital C-Suite: The Rise of the Chief Experience Officer

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Written by Heather Punke,  September 06, 2013, Becker’s Hospital Review Patient experience has always been an important metric for hospitals and health systems because of its impact on patient outcomes. “Higher patient satisfaction and experience leads to healthier and more engaged patients,” says Brian Johnston, a partner in Stanton Chase International’s Nashville, Tenn., office and leader… Read more »

What Does the Government Shutdown Mean for Hospital Finances?

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Written by Bob Herman, October 01, 2013, Becker’s Hospital Review The dance between House Republicans and the Senate to complete a budget came to an unfruitful end last night, resulting in the first shutdown of the federal government in the past 17 years. House Republicans made repeated attempts to defund, and then alter or delay… Read more »

Don’t Fall Back: 7 Lessons Learned From a Pioneer ACO

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Written by Molly Gamble, October 01, 2013, Becker’s Hospital Review You don’t know what you don’t know — that’s how the old saying goes. Fortunately, for hospitals and health systems that have yet to launch or are in the process of launching an accountable care organization, two leaders from Peoria, Ill.-based OSF HealthCare shared several lessons… Read more »

Lower Health Insurance Premiums to Come at Cost of Fewer Choices

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By ROBERT PEAR, New York Times WASHINGTON — Federal officials often say that health insurance will cost consumers less than expected under President Obama’s health care law. But they rarely mention one big reason: many insurers are significantly limiting the choices of doctors and hospitals available to consumers.   From California to Illinois to New… Read more »

6 strategies hospitals should steal from the airline industry

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by Jonathan H. Burroughs The Institute of Medicine, in its landmark report “Better Care at Lower Cost,” concludes at least $750 billion of the total national healthcare budget of $2.7 trillion represents waste as a result of poor IT infrastructure, supplier- rather than patient-centered reimbursement, lack of quality and transparency, and inefficient operations and flow…. Read more »

What to Say to the Candidates You Don’t Hire

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Anne Niederkorn for The Daily Muse, Sep 11, 2013 So you’ve just wrapped up a week of interviewing candidates for an opening in your department, and on Friday afternoon you reconvene with the rest of the interview committee to swap notes. The good news is there’s a clear front-runner, and you’re all excited to make… Read more »