Industry on Medicare ACO plan: too much risk too fast

Some providers warn they'll drop out if CMS finalizes its proposal as is. Others contend the agency is cracking down on the program in an attempt to kill it.

By Tony Abraham • Oct. 18, 2018

Hospitals making limited progress toward cost containment, survey shows

Fewer than one in five executives cited cost reductions greater than 5% in any priority area this year, according to Kaufman Hall.

By Meg Bryant • Oct. 18, 2018

Explore the Trendline➔

Payer/provider relationships

As M&A intensifies and companies embrace more holistic and value-based care models, partnerships have become more closely intertwined.

By Healthcare Dive staff

Hospital M&A down slightly in Q3

Texas has seen the most activity this year with five deals, including two in the third quarter, according to Kaufman Hall.

By Meg Bryant • Oct. 17, 2018

Leapfrog Group to start rating outpatient settings

The nonprofit will collect safety and quality data on ambulatory surgery centers and hospital outpatient surgery departments starting next year.

By Meg Bryant • Oct. 17, 2018

#AHIPMMD: Verma touts MA growth, blasts Medicare for all

So far, 270 Medicare Advantage plans will offer new benefits allowed for 2019 that include adult day care and meals, the CMS administrator said at the annual payer conference.

By Samantha Liss • Oct. 17, 2018

Massachusetts officials attach stiff conditions to Beth Israel-Lahey merger

The requirements follow a report warning the merger could result in a $128.4 million to $170.8 million spending increase for inpatient, outpatient and adult primary care services.

By Meg Bryant • Oct. 12, 2018

Long-term care hospitals: Overpaid or underappreciated?

"The costs associated with operating a long-term care hospital are more closely aligned with short-term acute care hospitals, but less expensive," says Susan Maupin, president of The Advisory Group.

By Meg Bryant • Oct. 12, 2018

Hospitals in path of Hurricane Michael forced to evacuate

Bay Medical Sacred Heart and Gulf Coast Regional Medical Center both sustained damage from the Category 4 storm and are evacuating patients. In Georgia, 35 facilities are operating on generators.

By Tony Abraham • Oct. 12, 2018

Doctors turn to free eConsult platforms to reduce diagnostic errors, study finds

More than 300,000 physicians accessed WebMD's Medscape Consult during the two-year observation period, according to research in npj Digital Medicine.

By Meg Bryant • Oct. 11, 2018

'Nowhere to hide' for rivals after blockbuster CVS-Aetna deal

The nearly $70 billion merger poses threats to providers as its scale and access to care aims to shift the healthcare dynamic in favor of consumers, BDO's David Friend told Healthcare Dive.

By Samantha Liss • Oct. 11, 2018

Suki AI-based voice assistant tops 1K patient encounters a week

The health IT startup claims it can sharply drop the time spent on medical notes.

By Meg Bryant • Oct. 11, 2018

NLRB charges Detroit Medical Center with unfair labor practices

Nurses at Huron Valley-Sinai Hospital, who have been negotiating a union contract since 2016, have said the hospital is discriminating and not bargaining in good faith.

By Tony Abraham • Oct. 11, 2018

Patient satisfaction is up, but billing woes can hurt online reviews, survey shows

More than half of respondents to the recent survey from predictive analytics firm Connance said their payer is more reliable than their provider for estimates of balance due.

By Meg Bryant • Oct. 10, 2018

CMS bid to overhaul E/M codes leaves few happy

With its proposed changes to payments and documentation for office visits, the agency is effectively forcing providers to reckon with a longstanding, oft-disputed problem. 

By Tony Abraham • Oct. 10, 2018

Texas fines Humana for lack of in-network anesthesiologists

The state insurance commissioner said no Humana members will pay extra because of the network issue. The payer has agreed to a corrective action plan.

By Samantha Liss • Oct. 10, 2018

Framework aims to employ e-triggers to improve diagnostic safety

Authors writing in BMJ Quality and Safety offer a plan for monitoring error rates and helping identify patients at greater risk of future adverse events.

By Meg Bryant • Oct. 10, 2018

Wisconsin shelled out $1.1B for uncompensated care in FY17

Last year's cost for charity care and bad debt is a 14% increase from 2016.

By Rebecca Pifer • Oct. 9, 2018

Trinity Health's financial results weighed down by EHR costs

The Michigan-based health system switched its entire operations to a single EHR during FY 2018, causing an impairment charge of nearly $108 million.

By Samantha Liss • Oct. 9, 2018

Remote patient monitoring cuts hospital admissions, ER visits, report finds

Heart disease and COPD are the most popular uses, but other less acute chronic conditions are starting to find traction with the technology, the industry and KLAS report found.

By Meg Bryant • Oct. 8, 2018

Dignity Health reports FY18 income boost

After posting an operating income loss last year, the San Francisco-based health system saw a turnaround.

By Samantha Liss • Oct. 8, 2018

Hospitals give patients conflicting information on obtaining records, study finds

Some hospitals weren't in compliance when it came to the charges they required for the release of records and some didn't adhere to state requirements for processing times, according to a report in JAMA.

By Samantha Liss • Oct. 5, 2018

CMS to post more hospital accrediting information online

The agency said it will post care quality deficiency findings from complaint surveys, a list of providers the agency determines to be out of compliance and overall performance data for accrediting organizations.

By Shannon Muchmore • Oct. 5, 2018

CMS tweaks local coverage policy to speed access to medical devices

AdvaMed CEO Scott Whitaker said the agency's actions are commendable, but more should be done.

By David Lim • Oct. 5, 2018

NYC Health + Hospitals looks to turn around declining outpatient operations

The public health system that cares for more than 1 million New Yorkers each year is expected to have a deficit of $1.8 billion by FY 2020, and this strategy is part of a larger attempt to make a financial turnaround.

By Samantha Liss • Oct. 4, 2018

Massachusetts nurse staffing mandate could cost nearly $950M annually

If the ballot question passes, hospitals in the state would have to hire as many as 3,100 additional full-time nurses to be in compliance, according to the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission.

By Tony Abraham • Oct. 4, 2018