Liberty (Mo.) Hospital was recently recognized again for high performance in revenue cycle, being named among 15 winners of the Healthcare Financial Management Association's 2023 MAP Award. The health system previously won the award in 2020. 

Healthcare bankruptcies have spiked this year as staffing shortages and climbing interest rates continue to challenge hospitals, health systems, physician staffing groups and other healthcare  companies, according to Bloomberg.

A July 20 report from patientrightsadvocate.org found that 36 percent of the 2,000 hospitals reviewed are complying with the federal price transparency rule that went into effect in January 2021. 

Delta County (Colo.) Memorial Hospital is struggling to remain open after losing $30 million in the last four years and being forced to repay $7 million in advance Medicare money, The Daily Sentinel reported July 23.

A PatientRightsAdvocate.org report published July 20 found that only 721 (36 percent) of the 2,000 hospitals examined were fully complying with the price transparency rule, up slightly from 24.5 percent compliance in February. 

Want to use artificial intelligence-enabled platforms to reduce costs and improve patient satisfaction? Look no further than the high-value assets in your hospital that stand to make the most money — expensive assets including operating suites, robotic technology, MRI equipment and, yes, highly paid clinicians.

A recent study suggesting public health emergency funds overpaid hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic paints an incomplete picture, the American Hospital Association alleged in a July 20 statement. 

Financial headwinds and macroeconomic pressures continue to hit physician staffing firms hard with one group filing for bankruptcy in May and another shutting down at the end of July. Both companies were backed by private equity firms.

A number of healthcare organizations have recently closed medical departments or ended services at facilities to shore up finances, focus on more in-demand services or address staffing shortages.

SSM Health is cutting trauma services at DePaul Hospital in Bridgeton, Mo., raising concerns about access to care for urgent and severe injuries — such as gunshots, stabbings or car crashes — for residents in the area, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported July 20. 

With labor costs on the rise, many hospitals and health systems are making cuts.

Orlando Health (Fla.) has expanded its partnership with Doctors' Center Hospital to include four hospitals and a free-standing emergency department in Puerto Rico.

Hospital finances are still under considerable pressure as workforce shortages, inflation and equity market volatility persist, according to a July 20 report from Fitch.

Credit ratings agency Fitch upgraded two non-profit hospitals and downgraded six in the second quarter of 2023.

Private equity investments, which are becoming more prominent in healthcare, are typically associated with higher costs to patients and payers, University of Chicago researchers found in a study published July 19 in BMJ.

Andy Dreesen said he will continue efforts to assess Leadville, Colo.-based St. Vincent Health's revenue cycle efficiency when he becomes the cash-strapped hospital's administrator in September, the Herald Democrat reported July 20. 

Physicians are concerned about Medicare's proposed physician pay cuts for 2024 — which would reduce the conversion factor by $1.14 (3.34 percent) — and argue the lack of clinically relevant alternative payment models available prevents medical groups from transitioning to value-based care,

Health systems' labor costs increased significantly over the last three years as hospitals relied on expensive contract labor during the pandemic and, more recently, increased pay to keep up with high inflation rates.

Economic factors affecting CFO staying power, compensation and pain points are at their most pressing for a generation, according to a recent analysis by DataRail, a financial planning and analysis platform.

Tupelo-based North Mississippi Health Services is moving forward with layoffs and job reassignments as part of its "redesign" plan to improve the organization's financial picture, according to a message sent to NMHS employees and affiliated providers July 19.