2023 High-Impact Initiatives: Emerging from the Crisis

by Mark Dubow, Director
and Meredith Inniger, Principal

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Leaders of hospitals and health systems face an array of difficult challenges as they move into 2023. In light of the challenges providers face, the Veralon team has identified high-impact initiatives that may help systems turn the corner for a brighter 2023. Briefly, the challenges include: Weakened balance sheets that limit capital available for new […]

Prioritize Service Lines During Challenging Times

by Mark Dubow, Director

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Analyzing and prioritizing service lines like a portfolio can support focused growth, even during a financial crisis. Cost cutting is critical but insufficient to ensure viability and success when the financial crisis faced by health systems is prolonged, as it has been in 2022. Health systems must also grow revenue. Tight budgets and limited access […]

Fair Play, Fair Pay: Assuring Provider Pay Equity

by Karin Chernoff Kaplan, Managing Director

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It’s not easy to determine if there is equity in provider compensation across your organization, given the many departments, specialties, and roles—but it’s essential. Consider the following hypothetical: A local news source reports a 30% pay discrepancy between your male and female maintenance employees performing the same work. Chances are you would rather not have […]

Responding to 5 Competitive Threats to CINs

by Molly Johnson, Consultant

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Health systems and their Clinically Integrated Networks (CINs) face threats from a variety of competitors, including market disruptors, that may lure away aligned independent physicians and patients. Although the landscape of these competitors differs by market, they threaten the core business of CINs and complicate health system alignment with independent physician groups. Contact the Author: […]

Magnitude of Financial Pressures Demands Fast, Actionable Financial Planning

by J. David Robeson, III, Principal
and Ross Shuster, Manager

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Yet again, the latest Omicron surge delivered a financial punch to hospitals and health systems across the country, with many organizations experiencing one of their worst quarters ever this year. Now, healthcare leaders must take a fresh look at their financial planning process to determine their way forward in a turbulent environment. When the highly […]

Anatomy of a Deal Series No. 5:
After the Deal Is Over: What Hospital Integration Looks Like

by Daniel M. Grauman, Managing Director & CEO

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The devil is in the details. A year after the merger of Independent Hospital (IHX) and Regional Health System (RHS), the work of integrating these facilities is still underway. Some aspects of integration, such as reviewing group purchasing contracts, food services agreements, opportunities to consolidate back-office functions and more, have been relatively easy to complete. […]

Why It’s Time to Update Your Physician Compensation Model

by Karin Chernoff Kaplan, Managing Director

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It’s time to stop playing “kick the can” when it comes to physician compensation in hospitals and health systems. When the 2021 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) sought to restructure physician reimbursement by increasing payment to cognitive care specialists such as primary care physicians and reducing reimbursement for procedure-based specialists, it was a move designed […]

Anatomy of a Deal Series No. 4:
Navigating the Due Diligence Process

by Daniel M. Grauman, Managing Director & CEO

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Once the matchmaking aspect of a healthcare M&A is complete and the parties involved agree on what partnership might look like, the next step is due diligence. Performing due diligence can seem like a “check the boxes” exercise—but it’s much more than that. It’s an opportunity to explore the strategic implications of a proposed merger […]

3 Ways to Use Hospital Price Transparency Data for Competitive Advantage

by John Harris, Director
and Clare O'Mara, Senior Associate

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Shifting a $1 trillion dollar industry from confidential contracts to publicly published pricing is a massive transformation. In the middle of recovering from the COVID-19 crisis, hospitals are responding to this transformation. Background: The hospital price transparency rules require consumer-friendly tools to help individuals shop for hospital services based on price. They also require hospitals […]