From using innovation to face challenges to moving into the "optimization stage," here is what three health system CFOs recently told Becker's they are most optimistic about in 2024:
Nick Barcellona. Senior vice president and CFO at WVU Medicine (Morgantown, W.Va.): In 2022, we launched Peak Health, our health insurance company, and started managing the health benefits of our 30,000 employees. Heading into 2024, we completed a highly successful campaign offering a Medicare Advantage product to Medicare-eligible West Virginians in 29 counties. In parallel with these efforts on the insurance side, the system continues to invest in the provider network. We have welcomed 10 new hospitals to the system in the past three years, and I am excited about moving beyond integration to the optimization stage for our growing system.
Deborah Bloomfield, PhD. CFO at Bon Secours Mercy Health (Cincinnati): Bon Secours Mercy Health is focused on providing quality, compassionate care to every patient who comes through our doors, and this is a responsibility we take very seriously. We are very pleased with the commitment of state Medicaid programs — including recently in South Carolina — that are helping us fulfill our commitment to serving those with great financial need by providing additional reimbursement to help offset some of the losses and costs.
In addition, access to care is essential to ensuring the health and well-being of our communities, and we are working with a variety of partners to ensure the needed expertise and resources are available to help accelerate this access. Our work with digital leader Nordic is helping to expand our digital presence, technology innovations and associated data analytics. This work leads to more tailored and patient-centered options and improved patient outcomes.
While we work to improve access and care for all, we do so with an eye on long-term sustainability which is achieved — in part — through efficient and effective operations. This focus has helped to improve cash flow and margins, which have lagged significantly since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dan Rieber. Vice president and CFO at UCHealth (Aurora, Colo.): 2024 is going to be another challenging year for hospitals across the nation. Expenses are outpacing revenue growth and labor expenses continue to increase. In Colorado, over 70 percent of hospitals have unsustainable operating margins. As the largest provider of Medicaid services in our state, and with charity care and undercompensated care expenses growing, UCHealth is experiencing these same financial challenges.
Given this outlook, the thing I'm most optimistic about is all the ways that UCHealth is using innovation to face these challenges. Whether it's expanding our offerings through primary care, behavioral health and virtual health, or developing new support roles within our hospitals that allow our nurses and providers to work at the top of their scope, our teams at UCHealth continue to find ways to ensure our patients receive the very best care.
We are committed to providing services to keep patients healthy and thriving and out of the hospital. We seek out partnerships to advance our mission and address social determinants of health, and we have partnered with Intermountain Health to integrate our clinically integrated networks with comprehensive patient resources. The venture is bringing together 700 primary care physicians and hundreds of clinics and hospitals to improve care coordination for more than 400,000 Colorado residents at lower costs.
These initiatives and more promise to help us deliver excellent care, support our staff members and providers, and continue our efforts to improve lives throughout our region.