Is it possible for hospitals and health systems to find "free money"?
According to a Forbes article by Dan Schneider, CEO of SIB Development & Consulting, it is. An analysis by his company found 95 percent of all regular monthly service bills contain errors. He outlined six ways businesses, including hospitals, can save money without cutting jobs or decimating a budget.
1. Read the fine print. Contracts may include language that could put a hospital at a disadvantage.
2. Look for contract terms that lock you into services. Then, Mr. Schneider wrote, find ways to get out of those locked conditions.
3. Make sure top managers or executives approve all service contracts. Multiyear contracts involve thousands of dollars in commitments, so it's worth top management's time to ensure the contracts make fiscal sense.
4. Look for clauses that result in automatic renewal. Remind officials to renegotiate contracts before auto-renewal clauses go into effect.
5. Don't sign up for pricing that runs out before the contract. Teaser rates are common in many contracts, and they typically are inflated within the life of the contract. "Find out what you'll be paying a year from now," Mr. Schneider wrote.
6. Don't be afraid to change contract terms you don't agree with. "Just because a large service provider offers you its standard agreement doesn't mean you can't change it," he wrote. "Yet almost nobody realizes they have this hidden power."
More Articles on Hospital Cost Savings:
Hospitals Feeling the Squeeze: 4 CFOs on Today's Most Pressing Financial Issues
The Power of Training: Peer-to-Peer Training Programs Lead to Significant Cost Savings
7 Waste Disposal Areas Where Hospitals Can Save Money