July 2016 Issue of Becker's Hospital Review
On the Cover
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Great Community Hospitals 2016 Becker's Hospital Review is pleased to release the 2016 edition of its 100 Great Community Hospitals list. Click here to continue >> |
CEO/Strategy & Leadership
How One Health System Addressed 2,000 Patients’ Social Needs in 2 YearsHow One Health System Addressed 2,000 Patients’ Social Needs in 2 Years
After accepting her position as CEO of Martinez, Calif.-based Contra Costa Regional Medical Center in 2009, Anna Roth, RN, had enough on her plate. But she wanted to do more. Click here to continue >>
UPMC Enters 3rd Partnership in China
Pittsburgh-based UPMC has signed a one-year agreement with Haikou, China-based First Chengmei Medical Industry Group to provide cancer care services on HainanIsland, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Click here to continue >>
Forbes: Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes Now Worth Nothing, Company Worth $800M
Forbes has dethroned the richest self-made woman in America and removed her name from all its wealthrelated lists, the business magazine announced June 1. Click here to continue >>
From a Truck Repair Garage to the Hospital C-Suite: 5 CEOs Reflect on Their First Jobs
Graduation season is a time of celebration and excitement, but for many people, it is also a time of trepidation. Click here to continue >>
8 Hospital, Health System Chief Transformation Officers to Know
A new leader is emerging in the hospital C-suite to help manage the shift from volume to value — the chief transformation officer. Click here to continue >>
Hospitals Claim the ACA Demands Mergers: Are Judges Warming Up to the Argument?
Judges have largely dismissed the argument that hospitals need to merge to meet the demands of the Affordable Care Act, but a Pennsylvania judge recently accepted the “Obamacare-made-me-do-it” defense, according to the National Law Review. Click here to continue >>
20 Highest Paid Healthcare CEOs of S&P 500 Companies20 Highest Paid Healthcare CEOs of S&P 500 Companies
Many of the highest earners among organizations in the Standard & Poor’s 500 index are healthcare and pharmaceutical company CEOs, according to a report from the Associated Press and research firm Equilar. Click here to continue >>
3 Obvious and Not-So-Obvious Reasons Hospitals Close
Hospitals across the nation face a myriad of challenges, such as underpayments from Medicare and Medicaid and, in certain markets, declining patient volumes. Click here to continue >>
California Hospital Closes After Attempt to Alter Facility Fails
Saddleback MemorialSan Clemente (Calif.) hospital closed May 30 at 11:59 p.m. Click here to continue >>
Viewpoint: It’s About Time for More Urgent Care Options in Boston
An op-ed published by The Boston Globe suggests traditional healthcare institutions are blocking out urgent care and retail clinics because they don’t like the competition. Click here to continue >>
Texas Hospital Closes, Lays Off 175 Before New Owner’s Takeover
Dallas-based Forest Park Medical Center’s campus in Fort Worth, Texas, shut down May 24 and laid off its employees, according to the StarTelegram. Click here to continue >>
Why Harvard and a Hong Kong Oyster Sauce Company Want Healthcare to Focus on Happiness
They say finding happiness is priceless — but $21 million toward the cause can’t hurt. Click here to continue >>
8 Recent Hospital, Health System Layoffs
The following hospital and health system layoffs were reported by Becker’s Hospital Review in May. Click here to continue >>
Mount Sinai to Shutter Beth Israel Hospital
New York City-based Mount Sinai Health System has unveiled a plan to shutter 856-bed Mount Sinai Beth Israel and replace it with a much smaller 70-bed facility. Click here to continue >>
CFO/Finance
Fortune-Telling in Revenue Cycle Management: Patient Personas and Propensities to Pay
A trend that is having a very significant impact on healthcare payments today is undoubtedly the shift of financial accountability to healthcare’s new patient consumers, with self-pay now being recognized as the third largest payer behind Medicare and Medicaid.
Milliman: Americans’ Healthcare Costs Have Tripled Since 2001
In 2016, an employer-sponsored PPO health plan for an American family of four costs $25,826, on average, an amount that has more than tripled since 2001 when the average cost was $8,414. Click here to continue >>
UnitedHealth Will Only Remain on 3 State Exchanges in 2017
UnitedHealth is bidding adieu to the Affordable Care Act exchanges in 31 states, meaning it will only operate in three markets next year, according to the Star Tribune. Click here to continue >>
Study: Hospitals That Deliver Superior Patient Experience See 50% Higher Margins
Hospitals that are top HCAHPS performers are seeing their revenues and net margins grow at an above-average rate, according to a recent Accenture study. Click here to continue >>
Bon Secours Launches Insurance Network
Bon Secours Richmond (Va.) Health System launched Bon Secours Value Network, a self-insured plan for small- and medium-sized businesses in central Virginia, according to The Richmond Times-Dispatch. Click here to continue >>
Texas Health Resources, Aetna to Launch Health Plan
Arlington-based Texas Health Resources and Hartford, Conn.-based Aetna have partnered to offer fully-insured and self-insured commercial insurance products to employers and consumers in 14 counties in the Dallas-Forth Worth area. Click here to continue >>
To Stabilize Finances, Presence Health Secures $528.1M Loan
Chicago-based Presence Health confirmed it received a $528.1 million short-term loan from JPMorgran Chase as the Catholic hospital system works to stabilize its financial footing, reports Chicago Tribune. Click here to continue >>
13 Hospitals Planning Facility Upgrades, Expansions
The following hospitals recently announced plans to expand, upgrade or renovate their facilities. Click here to continue >>
NIH Awards $142M to Mayo Clinic for Precision Medicine Biobank
The National Institutes of Health will award the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., $142 million to create the world’s largest research-cohort biobank for President Barack Obama’s Precision Medicine Initiative Cohort Program. Click here to continue >>
Feds Join Executive’s $50M False Claims Suit Against Prime Healthcare
The Department of Justice intervened in a whistle-blower lawsuit against Prime Healthcare, alleging the Ontario, Calif.-based hospital chain defrauded the federal government of millions of dollars by billing Medicare for medically unnecessary inpatient short-stay admissions, which should have been classified as outpatient or observation cases. Click here to continue >>
Novant Health Sees Operating Income Jump 115.2%
Novant Health reported operating income of $42.3 million in the three months that ended March 31, up 115.2 percent from $19.7 million in the same period of the year prior. Click here to continue >>
22 Hospital Outlook and Credit Rating Actions
The following hospital and health system rating and outlook changes and affirmations took place between May 23 and June 3. Click here to continue >>
20 Most Costly Inpatient Conditions
Total aggregate hospital costs for 35.6 million hospital stays totaled $381.4 billion in 2013, with 20 conditions accounting for nearly half of hospital costs, according to a statistical brief from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project. Click here to continue >>
CMS Issues Final Rule for Medicare Shared Savings Program ACOs: 5 Takeaways
CMS released a final rule Monday that aims to strengthen incentives for accountable care organizations in the Medicare Shared Savings Program. Click here to continue >>
5th Annual CEO + CFO Roundtable
CIO/HIT
8 Hospitals’ Finances Hurt by EHR Costs
EHR implementations are getting larger, more comprehensive and, in turn, more expensive. Click here to continue >>
What Comes After the Epic Go-Live? 6 Questions With MD Anderson CIO Chris Belmont
Houston-based University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is one of the latest health systems to go live on Epic’s EHR. Click here to continue >>
Judy Faulkner Ranks No. 3 on Forbes’ ‘America’s Richest Self-Made Women’ List
Forbes has released its list of “America’s Richest Self-Made Women,” and Epic founder and CEO Judy Faulkner earned one of the top spots. Click here to continue >>
Kansas Heart Hospital Pays Ransom, Then Hackers Come Back for More
After hackers locked files at Kansas Heart Hospital in a ransomware attack, the Wichita-based hospital paid the ransom. Click here to continue >>
The State of Interoperability: 5 Statistics From the ONC
Despite struggles and obstacles related to interoperability, hospitals are exchanging, sharing and using outside data more often than before. Click here to continue >>
DOD’s Cerner EHR Go-Live Timeline ‘Not Realistic,’ Audit FindsDOD’s Cerner EHR Go-Live Timeline ‘Not Realistic,’ Audit Finds
The Department of Defense announced plans to begin implementing its Cerner EHR this December, but an audit from the DOD’s Office of Inspector General questions the feasibility of that timeline, suggesting the EHR won’t be ready to begin implementation by that time. Click here to continue >>
Certified EHR Adoption ‘Nearly Universal’ in Acute Care Hospitals: 4 Statistics from the ONC
The latest data on EHR adoption indicates nearly all non-federal acute care hospitals are using certified EHR technology. Click here to continue >>
Thousands of NFL Players' Health Data Stolen From Trainer's CarThousands of NFL Players' Health Data Stolen From Trainer's Car
The health data of thousands of NFL players may be compromised after a backpack containing paper and electronic medical records was stolen from an athletic trainer’s car, reports Deadspin. Click here to continue >>
After Confusion, HHS Confirms HIPAA Was Not Waived After Orlando Shooting
Shortly after the June 12 shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Fla., Mayor Buddy Dyer told reporters he had contacted the White House to waive HIPAA regulations so area hospitals could communicate with victims' family members. Click here to continue >>
Changing Healthcare Means Changing Organizational Culture: 3 Health System Leaders Weigh In
A culture of engagement and accountability is essential for health systems to succeed in an era of population health management and accountable care. Click here to continue >>
Executive Briefing
Healthcare's Second Curve: Is Your Clinical Documentation Ready?
Healthcare and economics have always been entwined. Click here to continue >>
Revenue Cycle Management
30 Things to Know About Balance Billing
A long-fought battle over fair reimbursement rates for both in-network and out-of-network medical coverage has largely pitted payers against providers. Click here to continue >>
41% of Patients Use Payment Plans for Medical Expenses41% of Patients Use Payment Plans for Medical Expenses
A majority of patients have received a confusing medical bill, and many have received a bill they were unable to pay, according to Copatient’s 2016 State of Medical Bill Confusion survey. Click here to continue >>
66% of US Citizens Would Struggle With a Surprise $1k Bill
As healthcare costs and insurance deductibles continue to creep upwards, Americans are finding unexpected medical bills more difficult to afford. Click here to continue >>
Oregon Hospitals Pledge to Give Patients Price Estimates in 3 Days
Oregon hospitals took a step toward improved price transparency in May when hospitals promised to provide patients with cost estimates within three days of scheduling a medical procedure, reports The Oregonian. Click here to continue >>
Difficult Collections Force Struggling Calif. Hospital to Revise Revenue Projections
Sebastopol, Calif.- based Sonoma West Medical Center has reduced its projected revenue forecasts as the hospital struggles to collect payment from patients and suffers large operational losses, reports the Press Democrat. Click here to continue >>
HHS Taps 6 Health Systems for Bill Advisory Panel
HHS has selected a number of leading health systems to serve on its advisory panel for the agency’s “A Bill You Can Understand” challenge. Click here to continue >>
Mosaic Life Care approves $16.9M in Debt Forgiveness
St. Joseph, Mo.-based Mosaic Life Care has approved $16.9 million in debt forgiveness for 5,070 patients. Click here to continue >>
Less Than 25% of Hospitals on Track to Hit CMS' Value-Based Payment Goal
Hospitals are slowly progressing toward CMS' goal of transitioning half of payments to value-based care models by 2018, a recent survey of healthcare executives from Health Catalyst reveals. Click here to continue >>
Feds: Carolinas HealthCare Forced Steering Restrictions in Top Payer Contracts
The Department of Justice and North Carolina Attorney General have filed an antitrust lawsuit against Carolinas HealthCare System, alleging the Charlotte, N.C.-based system drove up costs in the region by imposing steering restrictions in contracts with commercial health insurers. Click here to continue >>
How to Align Surgeons to Increase Productivity and Curtail Outmigration
Since surgical departments typically drive the majority of a hospital's revenue, it's imperative for hospitals to attract the best surgeons and create a robust perioperative services line. Click here to continue >>
CMO/Care Delivery
An Epic Go-Live, the Opioid Crisis and More: Mass General’s CNO Weighs In
Jeanette Ives Erickson, DNP, RN, is CNO and senior vice president of patient care services at Boston’s Massachusetts General Hospital — one of the founding hospitals of Partners HealthCare. Click here to continue >>
Which Female Physicians Earn Most?
Male physicians still earn more than their female counterparts in both primary and specialty care — though a survey from Medscape suggests this gap is closing. Click here to continue >>
CMS Officials to Hospitals: Stop Misusing HCAHPS Measures
In an opinion piece in JAMA in May, three officials from CMS urged hospital leaders to stop disaggregating measures from HCAHPS for internal use. Click here to continue >>
Why are Physicians More Likely to Prescribe Antibiotics Later in the Day? 5 Things to Know
As the day concludes, so does mental strength. As a result, physicians tend to prescribe more antibiotics, according to athenaInsight. Click here to continue >>
Primary Care Pay Grows Faster Than Specialties: 6 Findings
Compensation for primary care providers increased at a faster rate than specialty care compensation last year, according to the 2015 Medical Group Management Association annual compensation survey. Click here to continue >>
Untreatable Superbug Makes Its Way to US for First Time: 6 Things to Know
A strain of E. coli resistant to colistin — the antibiotic of last resort — was identified for the first time in the U.S. in April, marking “the emergence of a truly pan-drug resistant bacteria,” according to a study published in Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy in May. Click here to continue >>
50 States Ranked by the Share of Adults Who Went a Year Without Visiting a Physician
Here is a ranking of the 50 states and Washington, D.C., by the percentage of adults who did not see or talk to a general physician in 12 months. Click here to continue >>
Intermountain, Stanford, Providence Form 79-Hospital Alliance to Share Cancer Data
Three healthcare powerhouses joined forces with a precision medicine firm June 2 in an initiative to advance cancer care through data sharing and increased access to clinical trials. Click here to continue >>
CMS' Proposed Rule for Hospitals: Reduce Antibiotic Use or Exit Medicare
CMS released a proposed rule change to its Conditions of Participation June 13 which would, among other changes, require hospitals to implement antibiotic stewardship programs in order to participate in Medicare and Medicaid. Click here to continue >>
4 Major Health Systems Announce New Marketplace for ‘Green’ Products
Lebanon, N.H.-based DartmouthHitchcock; San Francisco-based Dignity Health; La Crosse, Wis.-based Gundersen Health System; and Bostonbased Partners HealthCare have collaborated with Health Care Without Harm and Practice Greenhealth to create a new marketplace for healthy and environmentally safe products. Click here to continue >>
Cone Health Sees Operating Margin Fall as Supply Costs Creep Upward
Greensboro, N.C.-based Cone Health recorded operating income of $16.7 million for the six months ended March 31, down 39.8 percent from operating income of $27.8 million in the same period of the year prior. Click here to continue >>
12 Healthcare Organizations Win ECRI Healthcare Supply Chain Achievement Award
Twelve healthcare organizations are winners of the fifth annual Healthcare Supply Chain Achievement Award from the ECRI Institute. Click here to continue >>
Supply Chain
Antidote for Heroin Overdose Sees Huge Price Spike
The price of a life-saving drug that can reverse an opioid overdose is rising dramatically, just as healthcare officials push to make the drug more available in clinics, homes and schools, according to Politico. Click here to continue >>
The Top Supply Chain Challenges of 2016
The supply chain poses a number of challenges for hospitals and health systems, and is often at the focal point of efforts to eliminate waste and reduce spending. Click here to continue >>
These Drug, Device Companies are Offering Money-Back Guarantees to Hospitals, Payers
An increasing number of medical device and pharmaceutical companies are offering a money-back guarantee to payers and providers for products that do not work as intended, reports STAT. Click here to continue >>
Thought Leadership
Preserving Community Hospitals' Authentic Local Identities During Acquisitions
Since I became president and CEO of Great Neck, N.Y.-based Northwell Health in 2002, our system has acquired approximately six community hospitals. Click here to continue >>
https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/hospital-transactions-and-valuation/preserving-community-hospitals-authentic-local-identities-during-acquisitions.html
Corner Office: Greater Waterbury Health Network and Hospital CEO Darlene Stromstad on Excelling Despite Distractions
Darlene Stromstad is used to working under pressure. Click here to continue >>
Hospital and Health System Executive Moves. Click here to continue >>
Hospital and Health System Transactions. Click here to continue >>