After two missed pay periods, employees of Washington Regional Medical Center in Plymouth, N.C., are expected to be paid this week, according to TV station WCTI.

Computer-assisted coding technology has helped hospitals significantly reduce true coding errors over the past few years. Commercial payers are adapting their reimbursement guidelines to focus more on clinical validation to justify denials and, more often, downgrades. Clinical validation represents 90% to 95% of coding-related denials hospitals received in 2018.*

Going into 2020, the complex reimbursement landscape will be a top challenge for physicians, according to Medical Economics.

Seven revenue cycle management solutions are considered "unicorns," for their unique approach to addressing revenue cycle issues, according to a new report from KLAS. 

Although private equity M&A slowed in 2019 compared to the year prior, some experts say the 2020 presidential election will temporarily reverse that trend and prompt an uptick in PE deals in the first half of the year, according to The Wall Street Journal.

New York plans to develop a consumer-friendly healthcare price comparison website in 2020,  Gov. Andrew Cuomo, D, announced Dec. 27. 

Connecticut lawmakers recently ratified an agreement with hospitals on a unanimous vote, ending a four-year legal battle over the provider tax imposed on hospitals in 2011, according to the Hartford Courant.

Physician specialties that generate the most revenue for hospitals and Medicare payment rules were among the healthcare revenue cycle management topics that piqued the interest of readers this year.

UPMC Susquehanna Sunbury (Pa.) dropped its challenge to a tax exemption denial on Dec. 24, according to The Daily Item.  

Ellwood City (Pa.) Medical Center shut down Dec. 10, and many of the 152 employees who lost their jobs when the hospital closed are still waiting on their paychecks, according to the Ellwood City Ledger.

Though El Paso (Texas) Children's Hospital was projected to lose $4 million in 2019, the hospital reported a profit for the first time this year, according to CBS4.

Finance chiefs nationwide are closing their spreadsheets in relief after the ACA's Cadillac tax was repealed, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Akron, Ohio-based Summa Health recorded a community benefit of $110.7 million in 2018, the health system's CEO said Dec. 16.

Fort Scott, Kan., saw its hospital close in December 2018. Now, a year later, the community is questioning whether it needs a hospital, according to Kaiser Health News.

In an effort to save millions annually, Massena (N.Y.) Memorial Hospital applied in April to gain status as a critical access hospital. On Dec. 23, the town-owned hospital confirmed CMS denied its application.

A psychiatric hospital in Chicago lost its ability to bill Medicare and Medicaid amid allegations of physical and sexual abuse of youth patients, according to CBS Chicago.

Sacramento, Calif.-based Sutter Health reported a year-over-year increase in revenues in the third quarter of 2019, but the system ended the period with an operating loss, according to unaudited financial documents.

Physicians at Jellico (Tenn.) Community Hospital haven't been paid in months, and other workers' paychecks have been delayed, according to WVLT.

CMS has threatened to cut off Osawatomie (Kan.) State Hospital's Medicare funding early next year, according to The Wichita Eagle.

The following seven hospital and health system credit rating downgrades occurred in the past month. They are listed below in alphabetical order.