Healthcare Financial Management articles from September 2007

Healthcare Financial Management archives from September 2007

Analysis shows 6.6 million children covered by SCHIP at some point last year.(SCHIP Reauthorization)(State Children's Health Insurance Program )
September 1, 2007... With the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) set to expire Sept. 30, experts say that unless Congress and the White House reauthorize the program and agree on its funding, coverage for vulnerable children nationwide will be in...

Low-income beneficiaries to be reassigned to new drug plans, says group.(Medicare Part D)
September 1, 2007... An estimated 1.6 million Americans who are low-income beneficiaries of Medicare Part D will be reassigned to new drug plans by Jan. 1, 2008, or they face the option of paying more out of pocket for their prescription drug coverage, according to...

And we bet this figure is only going to go higher.(NEWS WATCH)(Brief article)
September 1, 2007... AND WE BET THIS FIGURE IS ONLY GOING TO GO HIGHER: Medicare spent $19.5 billion on skilled nursing facility care in 2006--about 6.6 percent of total Medicare speding in the free-for-service sector, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

Boosting five preventive services would save 100,000 lives each year, says study.(Healthcare Quality)(Report)
September 1, 2007... Increasing the use of just five preventive services would save more than 100,000 lives every year in the United States, according to a new study released in August by Partnership for Prevention. That includes 45,000 lives that would be saved...

... Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) policy, effective Oct. 1, 2007, allows physicians, providers, and suppliers to charge Medicare beneficiaries directly for missed appointments provided that the physician's or supplier's missed appointment policy applies equally to all patients (Medicare and non-Medicare).(CMS)(Brief article)
September 1, 2007... Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) policy, effective Oct. 1, 2007, allows physicians, providers, and suppliers to charge Medicare beneficiaries directly for missed appointments provided that the physician's or supplier's missed...

Something wrong with this picture.(NEWS WATCH)(Brief article)
September 1, 2007... SOMETHING WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE: According to a December 2006 report by Arizona's state Medicaid agency, although the state could expect to collect more than $5.6 million in copayments and other Medicaid cost-sharing measures, it would incur...

... Effective Jan. 1, 2008, CMS will require fiscal intermediaries and durable medical equipment Medicare administrative contractors to follow the same requirements as all carriers and Medicare administrative contractors for timeliness for processing "other-than-clean" claims.(United States. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services)(Brief article)
September 1, 2007... Effective Jan. 1, 2008, CMS will require fiscal intermediaries and durable medical equipment Medicare administrative contractors to follow the same requirements as all carriers and Medicare administrative contractors for timeliness for...

... The data reporting requirements for Medicare hospice claims have been expanded effective Jan. 1, 2008.(CMS)(Brief article)
September 1, 2007... The data reporting requirements for Medicare hospice claims have been expanded effective Jan. 1, 2008. Hospice providers must report data on their claims for Medicare payment, which describe the services provided in the course of delivering...

Women and health(non)coverage?(NEWS WATCH)(Report)(Brief article)
September 1, 2007... WOMEN AND HEALTH(NON)COVERAGE? Of uninsured women, 35% are unemployed, compared with 18% of uninsured men. And only 13% of uninsured men work part time, while 22% of uninsured women work part time, according to the Commonwealth Fund report...

... CMS issued a final rule (Federal Register, July 16, 2007) adopting the revised payment system for Medicare ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs) to be implemented Jan. 1, 2008.(FEDERAL REGISTER)(United States. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services)(Brief article)
September 1, 2007... CMS issued a final rule (Federal Register, July 16, 2007) adopting the revised payment system for Medicare ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs) to be implemented Jan. 1, 2008. The final rule expands beneficiary access to surgical procedures in...

Why employee benefits add to the cost of a car.(NEWS WATCH)(Brief article)
September 1, 2007... WHY EMPLOYEE BENEFITS ADD TO THE COST OF A CAR: According to www.statehealthfacts.org, the average U.S. employer contribution for family health insurance in 2005 was 76%. Employer contributions were lowest in North and South Dakota (67%) and...

... CMS issued a final rule (Federal Register, July 20, 2007) establishing the procedures for imposing exclusions for certain violations of the Medicare program.(FEDERAL REGISTER)(Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services)(Brief article)
September 1, 2007... CMS issued a final rule (Federal Register, July 20, 2007) establishing the procedures for imposing exclusions for certain violations of the Medicare program. The procedures are based on those that the Office of Inspector General has published...

(Despair)ities in quality and setting.(NEWS WATCH)(Brief article)
September 1, 2007... (DESPAIR)ITIES IN QUALITY AND SETTING: The AHRQ 2006 National Healthcare Quality Report shows that hospital measures of quality improved at a median annual rate of 7.8%, while measures of ambulatory care quality improved at a rate of 3.2%--and...

Senate, House pass SCHIP reauthorization bills.(Quick Hits: Top News Stories of the Month)(Brief article)
September 1, 2007... Despite threats of a veto by President Bush, the Senate passed a bill by a vote of 68-31 reauthorizing the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) on Aug. 2. By a vote of 225-204, the House had passed the Children's Health and...

FTC ruling: Evanston Northwestern's hospital acquisition "anticompetitive".(Quick Hits: Top News Stories of the Month)(United States. Federal Trade Commission)(Brief article)
September 1, 2007... The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has unanimously ruled that Evanston Northwestern Healthcare Corporation's (ENH) acquisition of Highland Park Hospital was anticompetitive and violated section 7 of the Clayton Act. The FTC ordered that ENH...

CMS announces payment reforms for inpatient hospital services.(Quick Hits: Top News Stories of the Month)(United States. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services)(Brief article)
September 1, 2007... The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on Aug. 1 issued a final rule intended to improve the accuracy of Medicare's payment under the acute care hospital inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS), while providing additional...

CMS increases SNF Medicare payments for FY08.(Quick Hits: Top News Stories of the Month)(United States. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services)(skilled nursing facility )(Brief article)
September 1, 2007... Under new rates issued Aug. 1 by CMS, Medicare payments for beneficiaries using skilled nursing facility (SNF) care will increase by approximately $690 million in FY08. The 3.3 percent increase will be reflected in Medicare payment rates to...

CMS increases IRF Medicare payments for FY08.(Quick Hits: Top News Stories of the Month)(United States. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services)(Inpatient rehabilitation facilities )(Brief article)
September 1, 2007... Inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs) will receive approximately $6.4 billion in payments from Medicare in FY08, under a rule announced Aug. 1 by CMS. The rule will update payment rates and modify payment policies for services furnished to...

Modern love: HFMA member Tracy Davison-DiCanto manages her husband's rock band and is the group's official photographer.(Member Spotlight)
September 1, 2007... Six years ago, Tracy Davison-DiCanto met her husband, Pete, when the two worked for the same consulting company. She couldn't have imagined that one day, she'd be the manager of his rock band and the photographer for the group. ...

Creating "memorable experiences" key to maximizing the value of care.(Conference notes)
September 1, 2007... Healthcare organizations must focus greater attention on making patient care a more memorable experience for their customers if they are to be successful in today's changing marketplace, author Jim Gilmore told participants at HFMA's 2007 ANI:...

Computer glitch results in $49 million bill.(Strange, but True)(Brief article)
September 1, 2007... A patient at a southern Arizona hospital received a $49 million bill last July when the computer software for the company preparing the bills on behalf of the hospital malfunctioned. The computer error affected 587 bills for patients whose...

Overheard.(ETCETERA)(Quotation)
September 1, 2007... "Divestiture is the preferred remedy for challenges to unlawful mergers, regardless of whether the challenge occurs before or -,her consummation. Thus, where it is relatively clear that the unwinding of a hospital merger would be unlikely to...

What's new on our web site.(ETCETERA)(Editorial)
September 1, 2007... hfm Toolbox: Calculating the Cost of Charity Care. See "Resource Library," then "Reimbursement," then "Uninsured," and click on the title of the document. hfm ToolBox: Charity Care and Patient Assistance Fund Administrative Policy. ...

Interpretation and treatment of wage index data vary.(Letter to the editor)
September 1, 2007... Bill Colletta, CPA Regional Director, Reimbursement Sisters of Mercy Health System St. Louis The timing of the June 2007 hfm article "Is Your Organization's Wage Index Accurate ?" could not have been better. The article...

Regarding retail clinics.(VIEWS)(Letter to the editor)
September 1, 2007... Note: The following are recent responses to "Retail Clinics: Here to Stay," hfm's July 2007 New Revenue Growth column by Arthur C. Sturm, It. Pamela Waymack, managing director, Phoenix Services, Evanston, Ill. It's a great article, but...

What the U.S. can learn from the U.K. about making a difference: a meeting of U.S. and U.K. colleagues reminded me of the many ways we as healthcare financial managers currently make a difference. It also highlighted the important work yet to be accomplished.(MAKE A DIFFERENCE)
September 1, 2007... In August, representatives of HFMA in the U.S. and U.K. met for the U.S./U.K. Exchange--an annual event that began formally in 1981. The Exchange, which took place in Paris, was an opportunity for healthcare financial managers from both sides...

Andrew Webber: a champion for value-driven health care.(hfm Q & A)(Interview)
September 1, 2007... Burdened by rising healthcare costs, U.S. businesses are trying to change the work force attitude of entitlement. Achieving such change requires persuading employees to be more cost-conscious and bear more of the cost of health care than they...

Blackout: on July 14, 1977, I woke up, looked at my alarm clock, and saw nothing.(Editorial)
September 1, 2007... The power was off, and my first thought was, "I'm late for work." When I left my apartment on Avenue A and East 2nd Street on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, I saw that the whole block was without power. By the time the bus dropped me off at...

hfm honors winners of Best Article Awards.(HFMA NEWS)(Editorial)
September 1, 2007... Each year, hfm recognizes authors who have demonstrated outstanding editorial achievement with the Helen Yerger/L. Vann Seawell Best Article Award. Winners are selected by a panel of five leaders in the healthcare industry and are judged based...

HFMA releases second report in new financing the future series.(HFMA NEWS)
September 1, 2007... The latest report in HFMA's third Financing the Future series discusses ways IT investment planning influences hospitals' long-term financial health and provides practical strategies to help hospitals optimize their technology investments. ...

John P. McGuire named Morgan Award recipient.(HFMA NEWS)(St. Anthony's Medical Center )
September 1, 2007... HFMA awarded the 2007 Frederick C. Morgan Achievement Award--the Association's highest individual honor--to John P. McGuire, FHFMA, CPA, executive vice president, CFO, and assistant treasurer of the board of St. Anthony's Medical Center in St....

Finding a strategy for the Kevin Durant of Medicare regs: I guess I'm just too addicted to sports.(EYE ON WASHINGTON)(Statistical data)
September 1, 2007... When I looked at the recent Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) final rule on ambulatory surgery centers, issued along with the proposed outpatient prospective payment system (OPPS) rule for CY08, I thought of Kevin Durant. And in...

Financing the Future III, report 2: today's technology spending trends: strategies for the healthcare executive: a highlight from the latest report.(hfma's financing the future)
September 1, 2007... Since 2003, Home's Financing the Future project has given healthcare providers the information they need to ensure their organizations have the resources necessary to deliver high-quality care for their communities. The project began with a...

A close call for 'usual charges'.(MANAGED CARE)
September 1, 2007... "[Value] is adjusted... not by any accurate measure, but by the haggling and bargaining of the market, according to that rough equality which, though not exact, is sufficient [or carrying on the business of common life." --Adam Smith, The...

Why Medicaid GME funding should be preserved.(MEDICARE/MEDICAID)(graduate medical education )
September 1, 2007... For years, states and hospitals have relied in substantial part on residents who are training in approved hospital graduate medical education (GME) programs to provide for care of Medicaid recipients and other patients. For 2002 alone, the...

Pay for performance comes to Medicare in 2009.(MEDICARE/MEDICAID)
September 1, 2007... In April, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released an options paper outlining its draft plan for a new program of financial incentives tied to hospital performance. (a) High-quality and efficient health care has become...

From bottom to top: how one provider retooled its collections: how should a hospital go about increasing its upfront collections from self-pay patients? California's Sutter Health has found an effective way to accomplish this goal.(Cover story)
September 1, 2007... We all know the mantra, "no margin, no mission." One increasingly important strategy for optimizing margins in this time of high-deductible health plans and higher copayments is to collect more cash from patients, including self-pay patients....

Super standardization: one health system, one chargemaster: standardizing hospital chargemasters is the logical starting place for health systems pursuing increased transparency and compliance. Follow best practices and you will reap a (baker's) dozen benefits.(FEATURE STORY)
September 1, 2007... As health systems continue to grow, and transparency continues to become more and more critical to consumers, employers, and regulators, the concept of a standard chargemaster has taken on new urgency. This circumstance is easier to appreciate...

Centralized scheduling: an unanticipated revenue cycle opportunity: learn strategies for increasing market share--and improving revenue--through a well-developed centralized scheduling program.(FEATURE STORY)
September 1, 2007... Centralizing outpatient scheduling presents acute care hospitals with a new revenue improvement opportunity: market share growth. However, these gains are not an automatic outcome of centralized scheduling. Two implementation aspects are...

Contracting to improve your revenue cycle performance: is the contracting process hurting your hospital administratively and financially? There are things you can do to lessen the pain.(FEATURE STORY)
September 1, 2007... Health plan administrative manuals can have a strong impact on the hospital revenue cycle. Hospitals need to address the fine print of payer policy and procedure requirements during contract negotiations to mitigate the implications to both...

UPMC's metric-driven revenue cycle: a commitment to managing by the metrics enabled one healthcare organization to achieve world class revenue cycle operations.(FEATURE STORY)
September 1, 2007... "In all human affairs, there are efforts, and there are results, and the strength of effort is the measure of the results." --James Allen, British-born American essayist, author of "As a Man Thinketh." The University of Pittsburgh...

Mining revenue cycle opportunities in health-system-based medical practices: the front end of the revenue cycle offers the greatest potential for operational improvements when integrating formerly independent medical practices.(FEATURE STORY)
September 1, 2007... For many health systems today, acquiring formerly independent medical practices can be a winning strategy, offering operational and financial synergies too good to pass up. But there are significant differences between revenue cycles of...

Postacute transfer payment: how often are hospitals being underpaid? CMS is seeking to minimize overpayments under Medicare's postacute transfer policy. But underpayments also can occur, and it's up to hospitals to identify those.(FEATURE STORY)
September 1, 2007... Ten years ago, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) determined that, for certain diagnostic-related groups (DRGs), Medicare was "double paying" for care. In these instances, patients were admitted to acute care hospitals but...

Capturing your charity care: 5 recommendations: providing charity care is central to a hospital's mission. Are you doing all you can to identify all your patients who qualify for charity care status?(FEATURE STORY)
September 1, 2007... Imagine that, on your next, flight, your plane has all the discount fare passengers in first class, while those who can afford to pay more are stuck in coach where there is little legroom. The U.S. healthcare system is set up that way:...

Days in A/R: what's your magic number? If you've been wondering how to figure your hospital's optimum number of days in A/R, this simple calculation may hold the answer.(FEATURE STORY)
September 1, 2007... As a healthcare financial manager, you know that the goal of any good accounts receivable department is to turn invoices into cash as expediently as possible. According to common wisdom in the past, anything less than 60 days was a good...

Using incentives to achieve A/R goals: by offering incentives to its patient accounts staff, one hospital dramatically improved its accounts receivables.(FEATURE STORY)
September 1, 2007... Why offer incentives to staff? They get paid to perform specific duties. Why pay them more for something they are expected to do? The answer: incentives work. At Mary Rutan Hospital, a 105-bed, not-for-profit, community hospital in...

Intelligent and actionable dashboards.(hfm TOOLBOX)
September 1, 2007... In the December 2004 hfm toolbox entitled "Thinking Beyond the Traditional Receivables Asset Behavior Dashboard," we encouraged healthcare providers to make their dashboards more meaningful by developing advanced measures that provided refined...

Responding to "SiCKO": the movie "SiCKO" takes aim at the U.S. healthcare industry. Healthcare financial managers should be prepared to answer questions raised by the movie.(LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT)
September 1, 2007... On June 29, 2007, Michael Moore launched a frontal assault on the American healthcare system with the movie "SiCKO." Leaders of our industry should expect questions from those who see the movie. The film seeks to sway American opinion to...

What kind of IT department are you paying for? "What's in your wallet?" Is the oft-heard commercial slogan uttered by displaced Viking warriors and other characters hawking the value of a nationally marketed credit card in a popular television commercial. The question's implication is: "Are you getting what you are paying for?".(INSIDE IT)
September 1, 2007... While most IT departments aren't funded by credit cards, the question is still apropos: Are you getting what you are paying for from your IT department? To paraphrase another credit card commercial, technology, like credit, can be...

Employer-directed marketing: a measurable approach to profitability: quantifying the profitability of marketing is a challenge. Here are some tips on adopting marketing strategies that contribute to your bottom line--and have a documented ROI.(NEW REVENUE GROWTH)
September 1, 2007... CFOs in hospitals and health systems have long been held accountable for quantifying the profitability of operations across the organization. Unlike many other industries, health care offers a highly complex environment replete with numerous...

Fair valuation of alternatives: clearing the audit hurdle: those new American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) guidelines for valuing alternative investments? Some auditors are taking a cautious view of them, as financial officers at many healthcare organizations have been finding out recently.(CAPITAL FINANCE)
September 1, 2007... Last summer, the AICPA published Alternative Investments--Audit Considerations: A Practice Aid for Auditors. This document established guidelines that organizations and auditors should consider in substantiating the fair valuation of...

National events.(CALENDAR)(Calendar)
September 1, 2007... NATIONAL EVENTS September 14, 17, and 19 CMS's plan to adopt severity-adjusted HFMA's Executive Briefings DRGs is the most significant change Atlanta (Sept. 14), to the Medicare hospital inpatient Chicago (Sept. 17), and...

Chapter events.(CALENDAR)(Calendar)
September 1, 2007... The following HFMA chapter events are scheduled to occur in September 2007. To learn more about these HFMA chapter events, please visit www.hfma.org/events, and select September and Chapter Events. September 9 Northern and Southern...

Fall 2007 seminars.(CALENDAR)(Calendar)
September 1, 2007... Fall 2007 Seminars Oct. 1-4 Oct. 8-11 Level Seminar Minneapolis Nashville Financial Management B Fundamentals of Healthcare Finance ...

Robert Amon.(PEOPLE)
September 1, 2007... Amon has joined HFM Consulting, LLC, Pottstown, Pa., as COO and partner. He had been CFO, Graduate Hospital, Philadelphia.

Amy A. Bilyea.(PEOPLE)
September 1, 2007... Bilyea has joined Otsego Memorial Hospital, Gaylord, Mich., as controller. Previously, she was director of accounting, Mercy Hospital, Cadillac, Mich.

David Epstein.(PEOPLE)
September 1, 2007... Epstein has joined Collect Rx, Inc., Encinitas, Calif., as executive vice president. Formerly, he was director of development for MD-X Solutions, Encinitas.

Michael Nowicki, EdD, FHFMA.(PEOPLE)(Fellow of the Healthcare Financial Management Association)(Brief article)
September 1, 2007... Nowicki has been named director, School of Health Administration, Texas State University-San Marcos, Texas. He is a professor of health administration at Texas State University, where his teaching, research, and service have been recognized...

Lonnie Younger, FHFMA, CPA.(PEOPLE)
September 1, 2007... Younger has been appointed CFO, Huntsville Hospital, Huntsville, Ala. Previously, he was vice president, finance, Baptist Hospital, Nashville, Tenn.

Christopher Boyer, CHFP.(PEOPLE)
September 1, 2007... Boyer has joined Navigant Consulting, Inc., Detroit, as director, healthcare practice.

F. James Horne.(PEOPLE)
September 1, 2007... Horne has been appointed managing director, national healthcare provider practice, Protiviti, Tampa, Fla. He had been managing director, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Tampa.

Steven M. Massey.(PEOPLE)
September 1, 2007... Massey has joined Fairview Northland Medical Center, Princeton, Minn., as finance manager. Previously, he was finance manager, New Ulm Medical Center, New Ulm, Minn.

Brian Robertson.(PEOPLE)
September 1, 2007... Robertson has been promoted from senior vice president to COO, MedeFinance, Emeryville, Calif.

Stephanie Underwood.(PEOPLE)
September 1, 2007... Underwood has been promoted from vice president to senior vice president, Tyler & Company, Chadds Ford, Pa.

LaSona Williams.(PEOPLE)
September 1, 2007... Williams has been promoted from accounting specialist to accounting manager, Kindred Hospitals, Philadelphia.

Trends in A/R days.(DATA TRENDS)(accounts receivable)
September 1, 2007... Hospital efforts to manage the patient revenue cycle may be contributing to a measurable, nationwide decline in net accounts receivable (A/R) days. The ratio of net A/It days outstanding is one of the most commonly used key performance...

Payment principles: based on the early debates by presidential candidates, coverage in the public press, and even the movie "SiCKO," healthcare reform is back in the spotlight.(FROM THE PRESIDENT)
September 1, 2007... And the ideas range from the equivalent of "radical surgery" to "take two aspirins and call me in the morning." Key to the reform proposals is the financing system-how funds flow into the healthcare sector (for example, from taxes,...