For Paul Chausse Jr., senior vice president of revenue cycle and chief revenue cycle officer at Tampa (Fla.) General Hospital, the shift to agentic AI is no longer on the horizon, it’s arrived and is reshaping how health systems operate.
“It’s no longer a theory, it’s here,” he said during a Becker’s “CFO and Revenue Cycle Podcast” episode. “AI powered bots are now handling functions that previously were dedicated to a lot of [full time equivalents] in the revenue cycle and elsewhere in healthcare and the country. The workflow is being restructured, not just optimized.”
Tampa General is staying on top of the AI game by deploying agents across areas like billing and claims follow up, denial management, appeal letter writing and release of information.
The hospital is working across three tools, making decisions based on the specific problem at hand. The tools are Palantir, Epic and Anthropic within Cowork.
Regarding what separates meaningful AI deployment from hype, Mr. Chausse was direct. “You’re not just doing ChatGPT and saying, ‘Hey, do this.’ It’s actually, here’s the problem I’m trying to solve, the outcome should look like this, and it goes out and solves the problem.”
Tampa General has approximately 15,000 employees and providers. Mr. Chausse stressed that workforce displacement is not the goal when implementing new technology tools.
“We’re not automating people out,” he said. “We’re automating the repetitive [tasks] so people can be more focused on the complex. That’s the real key here, getting folks to understand that there is something better at the end of the tunnel.”
With 35 years of healthcare experience under his belt, Mr. Chausse urged the next generation of RCM leaders to balance formal education, operational patience and technical fluency.
“Be patient, go through the learning curve, lead people you’re managing and understand what they’re doing,” he said. “The leaders who will win are the ones that combine technical [expertise] along with good leadership and AI-forward thinking.”
At the Becker's 11th Annual IT + Revenue Cycle Conference: The Future of AI & Digital Health, taking place September 14–17 in Chicago, healthcare executives and digital leaders from across the country will come together to explore how AI, interoperability, cybersecurity, and revenue cycle innovation are transforming care delivery, strengthening financial performance, and driving the next era of digital health. Apply for complimentary registration now.