Citing labor market dynamics and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Galesburg (Ill.) Cottage Hospital has cut 30 jobs, according to The Register-Mail.

A coding error was the reason Midland (Texas) Memorial Hospital paid $555,141 to resolve improper claims allegations made by the HHS Office of the Inspector General, hospital leaders told local television station KWES-TV Sept. 16.

The University of Massachusetts Amherst said Sept. 16 it received the largest gift in its history: $21.5 million to support its nursing school.

RIP Medical Debt, a nonprofit that purchases and forgives medical debt, and TransUnion Healthcare, the credit reporting agency's subsidiary for healthcare revenue cycle management, have jointly relieved more than $5 billion in medical debt, the organizations said Sept. 16.

Eight hospitals and health systems recently posted job listings seeking revenue cycle management expertise.

The U.S. government has agreed to reimburse NYC Health + Hospitals for nearly $900 million in pandemic-related emergency expenses, the Daily News reported Sept. 15. 

A new Texas law took effect in September seeking to cut prior authorization delays by rewarding physicians with high prior authorization approval rates, according to the American Medical Association.

The CMS price transparency rule is straining rural hospitals that were already at risk of shutting down due to financial woes exacerbated by the pandemic, Bloomberg Law reported Sept. 15.

A surge in COVID-19 hospitalizations among unvaccinated adults has cost the U.S. health system $5.7 billion from June to August of this year, according to a new Kaiser Family Foundation analysis.

Colorado hospitals treating Medicare patients injured in accidents caused by other people will have to bill Medicare before seeking payment from the patient, the state's Supreme Court decided Sept. 13.

Federal price transparency rules are doing an insufficient job at maximizing savings related to healthcare costs, according to a research released Sept. 14 by Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.

As patients demand more consumer-friendly payment experiences, hospitals must find ways to deliver cost-effective, easy-to-use, self-service, customized options. Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies can help facilitate this effort, using data to drive communication, payment schedules and collections.

Boston Children's Hospital received a $20 million gift to advance pediatric heart disease research and treatment, the organization said Sept. 14.

While policies to combat rising hospital prices often target highly concentrated hospital markets, a new analysis published in Health Affairs suggests that many pricey hospitals are actually inmarkets with a low concentration of hospitals.

Nearly 140 rural hospitals have closed since 2010, and the federal COVID-19 vaccine mandate could force at least one more to shut its doors. 

Below are 10 hospitals and health systems that recently posted job listings seeking CFOs.

Vermont regulators approved a 6 percent increase in patient payments for Burlington-based University of Vermont Medical Center but decreased its private insurer payments from 7 percent to 6 percent, VTDigger reported Sept. 13.

CMS issued several rules, actions and plans in the last two months, including updates on the surprise billing rule, outpatient service reimbursement and vaccine mandates for healthcare workers. 

The Biden administration issued proposed rules Sept. 10 that include a detailed process for enforcing surprise billing protections and new disclosure requirements for health plans and providers of air ambulance services. 

HHS' approach to distributing COVID-19 provider relief funding through February 2021 was a hit and miss when it came to health equity, according to a September study published in Health Affairs.