Manatee Memorial Hospital in Bradenton, Fla., is revising its charity care policies due to funding shortfalls, a move the investor-owned hospital called a "difficult, yet responsible, fiscally prudent decision," according to a June 3 report by the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.

From a New York City hospital striking a 10-year agreement with Med–Metrix to R1 RCM allowing its two biggest shareholders to discuss a potential joint buyout of the company, here are seven RCM headlines to know from May:   

Nonprofit hospital margins hit 4.3% in April, up 33% year over year, according to Kaufman Hall's "National Hospital Flash Report" released June 3.

Rehoboth McKinley Medical Center in Gallup, N.M., was recently hit with a $68 million malpractice verdict and a district court judge has ordered the hospital to put up a bond of more than $100 million before it can file an appeal, Source NM reported May 31.

New York City-based Mount Sinai posted an operating income of $11.6 million in the first quarter of 2024, down from an operating income of $45.3 million over the same period last year, according to its May 30 financial report. 

Hospital expenses decreased month over month in March but remained high compared to 2023 numbers, according to Kaufman Hall's most recent "National Hospital Flash Report."

A number of healthcare organizations have recently closed medical departments or ended services at facilities to shore up finances, focus on more in-demand services or address staffing shortages.

New Hyde Park, N.Y.-based Northwell Health reported an operating income of $73 million in the first quarter of 2024, up from a $22.6 operating loss in the same quarter in 2023, according to its May 30 financial report. 

Nonprofit hospitals in states with healthcare cost caps face a tougher road to financial strength, according to a May 30 report from Fitch.

The Justice Department has rejected bankrupt Dallas-based Steward Health Care's suggested auction timeline for its physician group Stewardship Health to be sold to UnitedHealth Group's subsidiary Optum. 

The Brooklyn Hospital Center in New York City has entered into a 10-year partnership that will make Med–Metrix its exclusive revenue cycle management services provider. 

Billings, Mont.-based RiverStone Health is closing two facilities, reducing other services and cutting nearly 9% of its workforce, KFF Health News reported May 30.

Pittsburgh-based Allegheny Health Network reported an operating loss of $31.3 million in the first quarter of 2024, a $4.9 million improvement from the $36.2 million loss it reported in the same period in 2023, according to its May 30 finance report. 

Contract negotiations between health systems and payers are a routine part of doing business, but ongoing cost and workforce pressures, inflation and widespread Medicare Advantage challenges are forcing health systems to push back against the dynamics of the payer-provider relationship.

New York City-based Montefiore Health System reported an operating loss of $27.9 million in the first quarter of 2024 after reporting an operating income of $31.8 million in the same quarter last year, according to its May 29 finance report. 

University of Missouri Health Care Women's Hospital in Columbia, Mo., has shared plans to permanently close its emergency room on June 10. 

Gardner, Mass.-based Heywood Healthcare on May 28 filed papers to emerge from bankruptcy, almost eight months after filing for Chapter 11 protection.

West Des Moines, Iowa-based UnityPoint Health posted a $3.1 million operating loss in the first quarter of 2024, an improvement from the $29 million operating loss it posted in the same quarter in 2023, according to its May 28 financial report. 

Reimbursements across all payers have fallen for five services, with an operating gap between -12.1% and -42.9%, an American Hospital Association report found.

Aurora-based Children's Hospital Colorado cautioned that it may close the cancer treatment center at its Colorado Springs hospitals and make other cuts because of Tricare reimbursement changes, the Denver Post reported May 29.