AI will play a central role in CommonSpirit’s future revenue cycle strategy after the Chicago-based system exits its outsourcing partnership with Conifer Health Solutions at the end of 2026, CFO Michael Browning said May 29.
In February, it was announced that Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare would regain full control of Conifer as CommonSpirit exits the joint venture and brings its revenue cycle operations in-house. Under the agreement, CommonSpirit will pay Tenet about $1.9 billion over the next three years.
CommonSpirit expects to use external vendors for scheduling, coding and billing over the next 12 to 24 months while it builds its own internal team and capabilities, Mr. Browning said on the system’s May 29 investor call.
“Using more than one vendor also creates performance accountability during the transition,” he said. “If vendors want to be part of the long-term model, they will need to deliver short-term results.”
Longer-term, AI will be “central to the future of revenue cycle at CommonSpirit,” he said.
“We believe AI can help reduce cost, improve outcomes and give us better insight into which functions should be insourced and which should be supported externally,” Mr. Browning said. “While we will use offshore vendors, that work would be limited to back-office functions, not patient-facing activity.”
Mr. Browning said the system’s revenue cycle insourcing work also connects directly to its broader payer strategy.
“We have been clear that we cannot continue to provide high-quality care at reimbursement levels that do not reflect the true cost of care,” he said. “Strengthening payer relationships, improving reimbursement and reducing the cost to collect are all part of building a more sustainable operating level.”
CommonSpirit believes insourcing revenue cycle functions can significantly lower its cost to collect, which is currently about double the industry average. Mr. Browning said bringing that metric closer to the industry benchmark would generate more than $1 billion in annual operational savings.
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