Capital Finance
Insurers looking to compete in the ever-changing healthcare marketplace will continue to focus on technology in 2013 as a means of improving payment models and partnerships with provider groups and as the industry looks to make the transition to consumer-focused products it will offer on health insurance exchanges.
Business intelligence tools are often touted as business must-haves, but many small medical practices and other small healthcare companies worry about the cost of such tools. BI experts and users say there are affordable options out there.
A new report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) examines how the Medicaid EHR incentive payments were distributed in 2011.
A new survey by CareerBuilder found that this year eight in 10 healthcare businesses have been impacted by bad hires, costing companies thousands of dollars.
Growth in health system capital spending in 2013 is projected to dip below 2010 levels as reimbursements continue to be cut, according to a recent Premier healthcare alliance survey of healthcare executives.
Based on 2011 data analyzed by the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA), total operating costs per full-time equivalent (FTE) physician rose a modest 1.27 percent since 2010. Hospital/IDS-owned multispecialty medical practices saw more of a cost jump over the same measurement period, MGMA reported, an increase of 6.45 percent.
When hospitals purchase free-standing physician offices they often convert them into outpatient clinics. The shift isn’t visible on the surface, but underneath the covers a powerful economic transformation has taken place, with the new owners now able to charge a so-called “facility fee” to cover the cost of their infrastructure.
A new tool created by ProPublica supports what nursing home auditors and researchers have been saying for years: federal fines vary widely by state. Nursing homes in some states pay a steep price for misconduct while those in neighboring states don't.
One of Texas' largest health systems is getting larger. Scott & White Healthcare and Dallas-based Baylor Health Care System announced late on Dec. 14 that they have signed an agreement to merge, creating a $7.7 billion organization.
The use of retail clinics for medical services is on the rise, according to a new survey from healthcare market research publisher Kalorama Information, which reports 21.3 percent of U.S. adults have visited a retail clinic, up from about 10 percent six years ago.