News

Looking back at 2013, what has been the impact on the hospital industry of sequestration and the recent government shutdown? How are hospitals coping with the uncertainty coming out of Washington?

The long-awaited health insurance exchanges, and in particular the federal HealthCare.gov, opened Oct. 1 in a tangled mess of poor software code, insufficient capacity and functionality and a lack of large IT project management best practices.

Nationwide, hospitals have been feeling the burden of Medicare penalties for avoidable 30-day readmissions.

Could you describe Conemaugh Health System?

ABIM has focused on credentialing and opening discussions about unnecessary care. How will you build on those and what future projects can you see yourself involved in through ABIM and the ABIM Foundation?

As the healthcare industry transforms, consolidation, mergers and acquisitions and creative partnerships continue.

While a handful of states said they would not expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, all state Medicaid programs are experiencing some transformation.

Two regulations in particular had the attention of hospitals this year: the two-midnight rule and the final rule on disproportionate share hospital payments from Medicaid.

Healthcare providers are expecting some form of slow down in accounts receivables immediately after the ICD-10 conversion in October 2014 – but less than one year from the deadline, it remains uncertain how significant these may be.

Between 1980 and 2009, healthcare expenditures grew by 7.4 percent, which most economists agree would bankrupt the nation if continued.