HealthLeadersMedia.com - Finance News & Analysis

UnitedHealth will tie doctors' payments to quality of care

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 12:07:00 GMT

UnitedHealth Group Inc., the largest U.S. health insurer by sales, will pay doctors based on the quality of their care in a cost-cutting effort that also benefits the company's consulting business. UnitedHealth expects to save twice as much as it would spend on incentive payments for doctors because patients will be healthier, according to company documents

Troubled West Penn Allegheny shows $34M loss in latest period

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 12:05:00 GMT

Losses continue at West Penn Allegheny Health System, which said Thursday it lost $34.1 million in the last three months of 2011, according to its most recent financial statement. That compared to a net loss of $1.4 million in the same quarter the year before. The troubled five-hospital health system's loss was driven by a 7.3 percent drop in revenue, to $387.3 million for the October-December quarter, compared to $417.8 million in the same quarter the year before.

For-profit cancer center to make its case to NH lawmakers

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 12:01:00 GMT

Cancer Treatment Centers of America is eyeing a spot in New Hampshire. The for profit chain wants to build a hospital in the Northeast. CTCA successfully lobbied Georgia to change its regulations so a specialty hospital could be built in that state. The company is hoping lawmakers in New Hampshire will make similar changes.

What to do with an empty hospital?

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 12:00:00 GMT

Kaleida Health is offering $1 million to whoever can do some major medicine on the soon-to-be-vacant Millard Fillmore Hospital. The hospital system announced Thursday that it will award the prize to the developer or design team that submits a winning proposal for redevelopment of the hospital at Gates Circle, one of the most desirable neighborhoods in the city. The developer would not receive the prize until it has completed purchase of the property. By dangling the money, Kaleida hopes to generate interest in the project. But this won't exactly be like winning the lottery.

Union launches effort to cap pay of hospital executives

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:59:00 GMT

The union that represents 1,200 El Camino Hospital workers formally kicked off an effort Wednesday to qualify a measure for the November ballot that would slash the pay of the health care provider's top brass. The proposed measure stands to affect as many as nine executives who each make more than $200,000 a year, not counting bonuses. One of the top earners is recently appointed CEO Tomi Ryba, who is to be paid at least $695,000.

Opinion: End may be near for hands-off regulation of healthcare insurance in TX

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:57:00 GMT

Like it or not, healthcare reform is coming to Texas, and it's dragging health insurance into the modern age. In this state, lawmakers and businesses embrace the mantra of free markets and low regulation. Regulators don't have the authority to reject increases in health insurance premiums. They didn't even bother with a rate review unless an increase topped 50 percent a year—a threshold that speaks volumes about the role of limited government here.

Hospital exec charged in $116M Medicare scam

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:55:00 GMT

An executive of Riverside General Hospital was arrested and charged Wednesday in a $116 million Medicare scheme involving kickbacks to patient recruiters and the owners of homes for the elderly and disabled in exchange for steering residents to Riverside's mental health clinics.

Wheaton sells stake in Fox Valley health system

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:51:00 GMT

Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare has sold its stake in Affinity Health System to Ministry Health Care. Affinity operates hospitals in Appleton, Oshkosh and Chilton, and the deal creates a health system with more than $2 billion in revenue, and more than 12,000 employees.

The future of mHealth: Healthcare apps to lower insurance costs

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:41:00 GMT

Several large U.S. health insurance companies, including Aetna, WellPoint and UnitedHealth Group, currently offer mobile apps that help members find network providers and perform other simple functions. On the surface, these apps strengthen connections with members and providers. However, the mobile health revolution holds deeper implications for the insurance industry, which plans to enhance future mobile offerings to more directly impact patient health, according to the American Medical Association.

UnitedHealth revamps fees

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 12:03:00 GMT

U.S. insurer UnitedHealth Group Inc will revise the way it pays doctors and hospitals, a move which it expects will bring down expenses, a Wall Street Journal report said, citing documents sent by the company to employer clients.

FL hospitals brace for Medicaid-related cutbacks

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 12:02:00 GMT

Gov. Rick Scott's controversial plan to overhaul the way Florida hospitals are compensated to treat the state's poorest and sickest residents—which could have cost the facilities some $1.7 billion next year—has failed to win backing from state lawmakers. But hospitals can still expect significant state cuts for their Medicaid care in the new budget year, with the House backing a plan to slash rates by 7 percent and the Senate unveiling a measure on Wednesday that could result in a 10 percent reduction.

Hospital's bankruptcy stokes talks on merger in Hudson County

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 11:57:00 GMT

The collapse of a deal to buy an ailing Jersey City hospital could renew merger talks in Hudson County, NJ, where a state-authorized report recommended that three hospitals consolidate services to save money. Christ Hospital filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection this week, after a private company, Prime Healthcare, withdrew its offer to purchase the money-losing hospital. The failed bid could lead Christ and two other hospitals—Bayonne Medical Center and Jersey City Medical Center—to combine services as recommended in the market study.

NH hospital officials blast for-profit cancer center bill

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 11:54:00 GMT

Representatives of New Hampshire's major hospitals fought a proposal that could pave the way for a for-profit cancer facility to come to the state at a hearing Tuesday that was notable for the absence of the company that was the impetus for the legislation: Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA). The bill would create a special "destination cancer hospital" classification, which would be exempt from the state's Certification of Need review process for new hospitals, as well as the Medicaid Enhancement Tax on the grounds that it wouldn't accept Medicaid patients.

Inside Steward's plans for Landmark

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 11:50:00 GMT

A document about Steward Health Care System shows rough plans for Landmark Medical Center if Steward eventually gets permission to buy the struggling Woonsocket, RI hospital. The document is an application sent to the Department of Health's "Office of Health Systems Development".

LSU criticized for hospital cuts

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 11:50:00 GMT

Louisiana's health chief Bruce Greenstein on Tuesday blasted LSU for "irresponsible" cuts to its hospital operations and lack of planning to offset their impact. Greenstein also said LSU overspending—not Gov. Bobby Jindal's midyear budget cuts—is responsible for the reductions. "They got their budget and a whole lot more money," Greenstein said. "They were spending at a rate that would have put them above it." LSU's top officials refused Tuesday to respond to Greenstein's accusations.

Tenet's Atlanta, South Fulton Medical Centers seek consolidation

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 11:47:00 GMT

Atlanta Medical Center and financially ailing South Fulton Medical Center announced Wednesday that they will seek state permission to consolidate the two hospitals. Both hospitals are owned by the Tenet Healthcare Corp. The 338-bed South Fulton Medical Center in East Point has been losing millions of dollars annually in recent years, according to reports filed with the state.

Expect more insurance drama in Pittsburgh

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 11:44:00 GMT

If you think Pittsburgh's health insurance landscape has changed dramatically in the last year, you ain't seen nothing yet, according to six of the region's top insurance executives. Expect more friction between physicians and health plans as insurers try to wring what they call unnecessary procedures, scans and surgeries out of the system.

For sale: Wyckoff Heights Medical Center's $33K limo, bought for ousted CEO

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 11:42:00 GMT

The ousted CEO of beleaguered Wyckoff Heights Medical Center had the hospital buy a $33,000 stretch limo for his use and expensed multiple $300 staff dinners, the man brought in to replace him revealed. "My predecessor spent an enormous amount of money," Ramon Rodriguez, interim CEO of the debt-burdened Bushwick hospital, told the Daily News Wednesday.

14 Hospitals reach $12M false claims accord

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 12:11:00 GMT

Fourteen hospitals in New York and six other states agreed to pay more than $12 million in total to settle allegations that they submitted false claims to Medicare, the U.S. Justice Department said. Four hospitals affiliated with Adventist Health System/Sunbelt Inc. in Florida will pay the largest sum, $3.9 million, according to an e-mailed statement by the Justice Department. Plainview Hospital in Plainview, New York, will pay $2.3 million, the largest single hospital payment, the agency said.

2 Tactics for ICD-10 & VBP Clinical Documentation

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 19:24:00 GMT

Clinical documentation is on the mind of every healthcare leader. How accurately a patient's hospital visit is documented will affect value-based purchasing incentive payments and whether reimbursements dip, grow, or stay the same during the ICD-10 transition. To do it right, ease in ICD-10 codes now and beef up your clinical documentation integrity.