Emergency department physicians at Daly City, Calif.-based Seton Medical Center, part of Alhambra, Calif.-based AMHC Healthcare, have gone unpaid due to the hospital's contractor, NES Health, not providing payment, a spokesperson for Seton told Becker's.

During a featured session at Becker's 9th Annual Health IT + Digital Health + RCM Conference, CorroHealth's Senior VP Samuel Dominik, and Senior VP of Clinical Documentation and DRG Integrity Bilal Mushtaq, MD, discussed the complexity of Diagnosis-Related Groups (DRGs) revenue integrity and the financial pressures faced by hospitals.

Salt Lake City-based Intermountain Health has reported $399 million in operating income (3.1% margin) for the nine months ending Sept. 30, more than double the $157 million operating gain (1.3% margin) reported in the same period last year. 

Abha Agrawal, MD, an internal medicine physician, joined Lawrence General Hospital as CEO in January. Four months later, Steward Health Care went bankrupt and left two nearby hospitals at risk of closure.

Healthcare bankruptcies hit a five-year high in 2023, when 12 hospitals and health systems filed for bankruptcy, but the trend has slowed in 2024 as average operating margins improved across the hospital sector. 

The American Medical Association has voted to support greater oversight of nonprofit hospitals and standardization of charity care policies to ensure such hospitals adhere to their charitable mission and justify their tax-exempt status. 

Philadelphia-based Thomas Jefferson University, owner of Jefferson Health, posted a $77.6 million operating loss (-3% margin) in the first fiscal quarter of 2025, compared to a $48 million operating loss (-2% margin) in the same quarter last year, according to its Nov. 12 financial report. 

Revenue cycle management company Aspirion has named Nick Giannasi CEO, effective immediately.

Prisma Health is taking a bold step to expand behavioral health services in South Carolina’s Upstate region with a planned inpatient behavioral health hospital.

The American Medical Association is pushing for tighter protections over prior authorization requirements due to continued physician frustration.

Heywood Healthcare in Gardner, Mass., exited Chapter 11 bankruptcy in October, maintaining its status as an independent, community-governed system after reorganization.

Greenfield, Iowa-based Adair County Memorial Hospital fully reopened to patients Nov. 11, six months after it sustained damage following a tornado.

High labor costs are keeping hospitals from financial growth and continue to challenge the bottom line, according to Kaufman Hall's National Hospital Flash Report, based on data from 1,300 physicians.

Renton, Wash.-based Providence has shared plans to close one of its Santa Rosa, Calif., urgent care locations, effective Feb. 7.

The Sisters of Charity Health System has shared plans to demolish shuttered Cleveland-based St. Vincent Charity Medical Center.

Medicare Advantage now provides health coverage to around 55% of the nation’s seniors, but some hospitals and health systems are choosing to end contracts with some MA plans due to administrative hurdles. The most frequently cited challenges include high prior authorization denial rates and delayed payments from insurers.

HCA Healthcare and Tenet Healthcare, two of the nation’s largest for-profit health systems, are reshaping their financial leadership with a wave of recent CFO appointments. 

Oakland, Calif.-based Kaiser Permanente posted a $608 million operating loss (-2.1% operating margin) in the third quarter of 2024, down from an operating income of $156 million (0.6% operating margin) in the same quarter last year, according to its Nov. 8 financial report.  

Jefferson Health is delaying a 3% pay increase for more than 42,000 employees from January to July as part of its plan to strengthen financial performance, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported Nov. 8.

The FTC under the Biden administration has been tough on big mergers and monopolies while favoring pro-worker policy changes, including a ban on noncompete agreements.