Chicago-based CommonSpirit will replace its current COO and president, Marvin O'Quinn, in August when he is due to retire, CFO Dan Morissette told a May 22 investor call.
The range of candidates to replace Mr. O'Quinn had been impressive so far, Mr. Morissette said. With the recent appointment of Sheri Shapiro as chief strategy officer, effective June 5, CommonSpirit is going through some changes in its executive leadership.
Payers were also becoming "increasingly aggressive" regarding reimbursement, Mr. Morissette added. While the 143-hospital system, for example, supported the No Surprises Act regarding patient billing, arbitration cases involving insurance companies tend to be "extremely challenging," he said.
"These are difficult times," Mr. Morissette said of CommonSpirit's overall challenges. "We expect initiatives to bear fruit in the coming quarters."
CommonSpirt, which reported first-quarter operating losses of $658 million, said it is taking a number of steps to help reduce costs and boost revenue, which include improved revenue cycle management and investing in better nursing retention as well as making job cuts at a nonclinical level.