Every once in a while, a study comes along that reminds us that a majority of the institutions we cover at Modern Healthcare are not-for-profits operating under government charters that absolve them from paying federal, state and local taxes. More than three-quarters of the hospitals beds in the U.S. are housed in religiously affiliated or… Continue reading New Approaches to Community Benefit Needed

Spending growth in the $2.9 trillion US health economy is expected to slow in 2016 as compared to 2015; however, it will still outpace overall economic inflation. Stock prices, earnings reports and the customer base have increased and that means the industry is financially healthy. Sadly, affordable healthcare remains out-of-reach for many consumers. PwC’s Health… Continue reading Healthcare Spending Growth Rate to Dip 6.5% in 2016

Many insurers have proposed premium hikes greater than 10% for individual health plans sold in 2016, citing higher-than-expected care costs and other...

Home Health Policies and Procedures to Lower Rehospitalization By Nathan Hope for MyHomecareBiz.com A recent report has shown that home health agencies are outperforming their post-acute counterparts as a whole in terms of rehospitalization rates. Data released last Wednesday by the Alliance for Home Health Quality and Innovation shows that home health agencies have markedly… Continue reading Home Health Policies and Procedures to Lower Rehospitalization

The Obama administration will seek to address two of consumers’ top concerns about coverage purchased through the Affordable Care Act’s exchanges — that doctor directories are inaccurate and that patients are hit with unexpected bills for costs not covered by insurance, the New York Times reports. Addressing Complaints About Directories According to the Times, many… Continue reading White House Looks To Address Consumers’ Top ACA Concerns

Providence Health & Services saw an improvement in its operating margin in 2014 as it treated more patients and reduced its bad debt, particularly in states that expanded their Medicaid rosters. The Renton, Wash.-based provider operates in five states, three of which expanded eligibility for Medicaid. Its hospitals saw a 26% increase in Medicaid patients… Continue reading Providence Health & Services Gets Boost From Medicaid Expansion

Thousands of families with a disabled or deceased parent may have received a lower subsidy than they deserved to buy health coverage through the federal insurance marketplace as a result of a calculation error by the federal government. In addition, some who should have been eligible for Medicaid may have been turned away, leaving them on the… Continue reading Thousands May Have Been Shorted On Insurance Subsidies After Calculation Error

New Law to Strip Social Security Numbers From Medicare Cards – Original article published by Robert Pear of the New York Times on April 20, 2015 WASHINGTON — Concerned about the rising prevalence and sophistication of identity theft, most private health insurance companies have abandoned the use of Social Security numbers to identify individuals. The… Continue reading New Law to Strip Social Security Numbers From Medicare Cards

Network squeeze: Controversies continue over narrow health plans “Many patients are simply accepting pure cash pricing for procedures—as if they had no insurance coverage at all—because it is cheaper than if they were to stick with their narrow-network options.” Los Angeles colorectal surgeon Dr. Allen Kamrava regularly faces financial challenges related to narrow-network health plans.… Continue reading Controversies Continue Over Narrow Health Plans

National Public Health Week starts today! To kick things off, President Obama issued a proclamation recognizing the value public health workers deliver to our country every day. Take a look! NATIONAL PUBLIC HEALTH WEEK, 2015 – – – – – – – BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA A PROCLAMATION Last year,… Continue reading President Obama Celebrates Public Health