Community Benefit

Hospitals in states that have expanded Medicaid eligibility under the Affordable Care Act are already bringing in fewer self-pay and charity care patient cases, according to an analysis by the Colorado Hospital Association.

Hospitals in Georgia have struggled financially in recent years, as uncompensated care costs rose after the recession and the state rejected Medicaid expansion. But one standalone facility decided that affiliation and clinical integration might be the right path to stave off closure.

One of the biggest beneficiaries of healthcare reform's expansion of insurance coverage to more than 13 million people this year has been the nation's safety-net hospitals. At least in the states that have chosen to accept the Medicaid expansion.

Almost a third of all hospitalizations now treat diabetic patients, and cost more than average. Diabetic admissions may be a problem that regulators, ACOs and providers need to solve for the long-term.

With new reporting requirements from the Affordable Care Act and increasing scrutiny of community benefits programs, executives of hospitals are taking a more critical look at their programs to make sure they're on target and creating a solid financial strategy.

Engagement is a big buzzword in healthcare these days. Every program seeks to achieve it; every provider wants to enhance it. But what is engagement exactly?

All but five states received a failing grade this year on the way they provide healthcare price transparency, according to a report by Catalyst for Payment Reform and the Health Care Incentives Improvement Institute.

Medicare's Trust Fund has a 12 years of solvency left and seniors are also being forced to pay more, making it a ripe time to reform today's haphazard payment system, argues Medicare's independent advisor.

Since 2008 when CMS first implemented the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems survey for U.S. hospitals, the scores from these surveys have become increasingly more important to hospital executives as a measure of quality. They are now used to determine 30 percent of the total incentive under the Hospital Value Based Purchasing program.

Last month, Paul R. Bengston, CEO of Northeastern Vermont Regional Hospital, a small, critical access hospital located in St. Johnsbury, Vt., was chosen to lead the American Hospital Association's Section for Small or Rural Hospitals in 2014. The 21-person governing council represents small or rural hospitals in the AHA's policy process and member services initiatives.