iProtean, now part of Veralon staff will be celebrating the holidays over the next two weeks. We hope you will celebrate as well! Enjoy your holiday season. Very little has changed in the tax reform bill from our report in late November. Here is a summary. Republicans have agreed to preserve tax-exempt, municipal […]
Moody’s Investors Service revised its 2018 outlook for not-for-profit and public health care from stable to negative, according to its recent report. It based its revision on its projections that operating cash flow will contract by 2-4 percent over the next 12-18 months. Revenue growth is under pressure because of very low reimbursement rate […]
(Source: Veralon, a healthcare consulting company providing services in strategic planning, mergers & acquisitions, healthcare valuation and physician compensation, and clinical transformation and value-based payment. Dan Grauman, an iProtean, now part of Veralon expert who appears in many iProtean, now part of Veralon courses, is the managing director and CEO.) In addition to setting […]
Although the final form of the tax bills in Congress has not been determined, it appears that discussion is progressing quickly. As it stands now, the final tax bill could affect not-for-profit and for-profit hospitals very differently, according to the Healthcare Financial Management Association. The Senate’s version of the bill would repeal the Affordable […]
The Obama Administration used the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to advance value-based payments. The current administration, however, has been making a series of regulatory changes that “slow or shrink some of these initiatives and let many doctors delay adopting the new system.” Decreased incentives to participate in value-based care and a reduction in reimbursement […]
CMS’s final rule for the Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) will increase overall 2018 hospital OPPS payment rates by 1.35 percent, according to a CMS fact sheet. However, hospitals are expected to see financial losses from Medicare payment changes related to drugs and knee replacements under the rule finalized this week. According to […]
(A preview of iProtean, now part of Veralon’s upcoming course, The Board’s Role in Leading Through Transition, featuring Karma Bass and Marian Jennings) Innovative boards are paying attention to their-risk taking appetite. Hospital and health system boards traditionally have been very conservative organizations. It’s a strong history, and it’s a good place from which […]
“As the Trump administration moves to reform the federal tax code, the country’s tax-exempt hospitals are bracing for potential challenges to their not-for-profit (NFP) status, with billions of dollars in federal taxes at stake,” according to the Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA) in an article released last week. NFP hospitals face increased scrutiny from […]
The finances of acquired hospitals generally suffer for two years after mergers and acquisitions (M&A), according to a recent report from HFMA and the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions. M&A activity has increased significantly in the past decade, driven by the pursuit of economies of scale and the potential for reducing the cost of […]
Hospital systems and health insurers have very different financing structures. Hospital boards and executive management will want to consider the fundamental differences when considering whether to combine both organizations within the same larger health system. Briefly, the health system has these fundamental financial structure characteristics: Significant physical plant investment Fewer growth opportunities Higher margins, […]