When hospitals merge or enter into transactions, or a larger health system acquires a hospital, due diligence becomes a step to the process. During due diligence, an organization can “look under the hood,” if you will, and take a very deep dive into the operations of a hospital to identify any significant red flags that […]
Veralon Views Blog
The Veralon Views blog is an extension of our partnership with leaders who are transforming the healthcare industry. Here, we share expert perspectives from our nationally recognized senior consulting team on issues that are key to the success of your organization.
Earlier this month, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) voted to cut reimbursement for some freestanding emergency rooms in urban areas. Industry analysts warned that the cuts could undermine access to care. Freestanding emergency departments receive Medicare payments equal to hospital emergency departments even though they have lower standby costs than on-campus emergency rooms, […]
Many hospitals are finding themselves in discussions with physician specialists regarding compensation for emergency department (ED) call coverage. An increasing number of physicians are paid for this coverage, and information on these payments is becoming more widely available to physicians in the form of published surveys and conversations with fellow physicians. While healthcare finance leaders […]
Continuing with excerpts from recent interviews with our experts, Marian Jennings and Nate Kaufman talked about moving from volume to value, and what that means to them. Interviewer: What is Value? Nate Kaufman: Value relates to the fact that the benefits being provided are worth the cost. The question that a healthcare provider […]
Now that the iProtean, now part of Veralon Symposium has concluded and we have a rich source of new material from our experts for the upcoming courses, we will from time to time feature select abstracts from our experts’ interviews. Subscribers will see new courses such as Health Care: We Have a Problem; Doing More […]
Performing due diligence can seem like a “check the boxes” exercise as organizations verify material facts, gain a clear view of the risks involved, and more. But there is strategic value in due diligence, especially in identifying the impact of the transaction on existing partnerships and relationships. Such insight empowers post-transaction planning and sets the […]
The head of the U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) said recently that the department will aggressively push to implement value-based payment, extending beyond ACOs and bundled payment initiatives. “ . . . we want to look at bold measures that will fundamentally reorient how Medicare and Medicaid pay for care and create a […]
Health experts have long argued that value-based payment would both improve quality and decrease/control healthcare costs. Now, five state governors have put into writing a set of policies and initiatives they believe could reduce the share of the economy consumed by health care. Value-based payment figures substantially into their “blueprint” for improving health care. […]
Twelve years after launching the retail health insurgency with the purchase of the start-up MinuteClinic, CVS Health is upping the ante. In the biggest deal of 2017, CVS Health acquired Aetna in December. At this point, all predictions about how this merger will impact hospitals and health systems are conjecture. However, hospital leaders would be […]
“Hospitals will face greater competition, risk of volume declines and margin erosion as the nation’s largest commercial health insurers aggressively pursue growth strategies that are aimed at lowering healthcare spending,” according to Moody’s Investors Service. Insurers’ strategies include: Acquisition of physician groups Acquisition of non-acute care services Tougher contract negotiations Greater restrictions on […]