As a hospital's pricing structure and chargemaster gain more coverage from media and consumers, hospitals will have to craft new financial strategies that show how pricing of services is flexible and sustainable.
According to a webinar from Brian Workinger, a strategic business solutions consultant at Craneware, there are five steps hospital revenue cycle executives should take to ensure their pricing strategy is both rational and financially justifiable.
1. Understand how the hospital is reimbursed. Hospitals must determine price sensitivity, assess fee schedules and dig into the limitations of reimbursement rates.
2. Conduct comparative data analysis. Comparing pricing data through rigorous benchmarking will allow hospitals to establish a market position. Mr. Workinger recommended hospitals receive departmental input during this step, as well.
3. Establish financial objectives. When hospitals are re-evaluating their charging practices, there must be a baseline level so hospitals know how much they need to charge to meet their budgetary requirements.
4. Develop a pricing methodology. Hospitals must illustrate their pricing structure among services is appropriate based on available data and coding best practices.
5. Have sensible commercial contract negotiations. Mr. Workinger said hospitals must ensure prices with commercial payers are positioned competitively and are also sensitive to favorable contracted terms.
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