Health Reform: Is the Hospital Industry Misapplying Congressional Intent?

Posted by Jason Greis on October 13, 2010 under Articles | Be the First to Comment

Thunder rolled down from Capitol Hill last week when Sen. Charles Grassley (R–Iowa) claimed that certain hospital systems and associations were misapplying the intent of Section 501(r)(5)(B) that prohibits the use of gross charges under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. In their comments to the IRS regarding implementing regulations, the American Hospital Association (AHA) urged the IRS to apply a “gross charges” basis to charge those who do not qualify for financial assistance, and to use it as a starting place for calculating assistance to those who do. Read More...

ACOs and the Shared Savings Program – Part II: Unanswered Questions

Posted by Jason Greis on October 12, 2010 under Articles | Comments are off for this article

In addition to the numerous misconceptions about Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) and the Shared Savings Program, there are a number of unknowns regarding implementation, including permitted legal structures, payment amounts, and performance measurement. This article identifies and discusses some of the more significant unanswered questions about ACOs and the Shared Savings Program.  Read More...

ACOs and the Shared Savings Program: Some Common Misconceptions

Posted by Jason Greis on October 2, 2010 under Articles | Be the First to Comment

Section 3022 of the Patient Protection and Accountable Care Act (the Act) creates the Shared Savings Program for Medicare. Under the Shared Savings Program, which is to take effect no later than Jan. 1, 2012, Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) that meet certain requirements established by the Secretary of Health and Human Services will be eligible to receive additional payments from Medicare where certain performance guidelines are met and cost-savings targets are achieved. The amount of the additional payment will be a percentage of the difference between the estimated per capita Medicare expenditures for patients assigned to the ACO and the cost-savings per capita Medicare expenditures threshold. Read More...

Kindred Continues Expansion through Acquisitions

Posted by Jason Greis on August 28, 2010 under Articles, Industry News | Be the First to Comment

Kindred Healthcare has moved to expand its market presence in key cluster markets in California and Texas by signing definitive agreements to purchase five LTACHs in southern California for $180 million and three Texas-based nursing and rehabilitation centers for $38 million in two separate all-cash deals for a total purchase price of $218 million.  Both transactions require regulatory approvals and are expected to close later this year. Read More...

Why Pre-admission Screening Matters to Post-Acute Care Institutions

Posted by Jason Greis on August 24, 2010 under Articles | Be the First to Comment

The federal government pays more than 40% of all money spent on healthcare in the U.S. and it is focused like never before on managing those costs. Along with reducing already low reimbursement levels, CMS will look to two primary means for cost reduction–utilization and admissions review and reimbursements tied to outcomes. For post-acute care facilities this translates into a single imperative – “admitting the appropriate patient”. Read More...

Strategies for Hospital Leadership – Identifying Strengths, Allocating Hospital Resources and Focusing on Profitable Niche Leadership

Posted by Jason Greis on August 16, 2010 under Whitepapers | Be the First to Comment

This is a great time for hospital leadership and boards to reevaluate their strategies.   The attached whitepaper written by two of my colleagues, Scott Becker and Bart Walker, contains eight core thoughts and concepts on strategic planning for hospitals. Read More...