Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare's revenue cycle management arm Conifer Health Solutions "has been an incredibly valuable asset" to the for-profit system, CEO Saum Sutaria, MD, said.
"In an environment where complexity has plagued revenue cycle companies, we've stayed focused on the basics, collecting cash for clients across the board at a very, very, high rate," Dr. Sutaria said, speaking May 14 at the Bank of America Securities 2024 Health Care Conference. "And we are now returning the organization to topline growth coming out of the pandemic."
In 2019, Tenet announced plans to spin-off Conifer, but called off those plans in 2022. The decision came following a review from Tenet's board of directors and independent legal and financial advisors. Among the contributing factors were major financial improvement from Tenet and Conifer and prospective growth within Conifer's pipeline.
In February, Tenet combined Conifer and its hospital operations into a single operating segment. The change was made to "reflect recent updates to the organizational and management structure of Conifer and hospital operations," William McDowell, Tenet's vice president of investor relations, said during the company's Feb. 8 earnings call.
"We're very excited about what Conifer will contribute to the company over the next few years," Dr. Sutaria said May 14.