Providers say inpatient rate adjustment for inflation not sufficient

Providers say inpatient rate adjustment for inflation not sufficient

Providers remained largely unhappy early this week despite a final ruling issued by the CMS on Monday that increases inpatient payments to hospitals by more than was initially proposed. Organizations like The American Hospital Association said it was “pleased” by the payment update, a 4.3% bump up from the proposed 3.2%, but added it “still falls short of what hospitals and […]

For health systems, how big is too big?

For health systems, how big is too big?

Renton, Washington-based not-for-profit system Providence acquired Swedish Health Services’ five hospitals in 2012. Median operating cost per adjusted discharge at the 227-bed Swedish Medical Center Cherry Hill increased an average of 7% a year from 2011 to 2019, although operating cost growth stagnated from 2015 to 2017. Medical inflation accounted for about 34% of the increase in median operating cost […]

Lessons learned from prison and dialysis while trying to prevent the pain, loss and cost of kidney diseases – MedCity News

Lessons learned from prison and dialysis while trying to prevent the pain, loss and cost of kidney diseases – MedCity News

Cardiology has the heart attack, oncology has the fateful diagnosis date, but there is no “kidney attack” to serve as a traumatic wake-up call for those at risk for kidney diseases. There is no event to urgently change someone’s point of view; “From this moment forward, you will pay attention to your kidneys and do what is needed to avoid […]

White House names monkeypox response coordinator as virus spreads

White House names monkeypox response coordinator as virus spreads

The White House on Tuesday named a Federal Emergency Management Agency official as coordinator for the monkeypox response, as the virus spreads in the United States.   The naming of a national coordinator for the monkeypox response, Robert Fenton, comes as the Biden administration looks to step up its response to the virus.   A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) […]

Digital transformation: Reimagining clinical trial management – MedCity News

Digital transformation: Reimagining clinical trial management – MedCity News

Even before Covid-19 disrupted the traditional model for clinical trials, researchers were harnessing the power of technology to make trials more accessible and improve data collection. The movement had coalesced under the banner of decentralized clinical trials, or DCTs, which leverage technology and other non-traditional approaches to monitor patients and gather data without limits on geography. Another envisioned benefit included […]

For top healthcare execs, leadership shapes legacy

For top healthcare execs, leadership shapes legacy

Ruth Williams-Brinkley, president at Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of the Mid-Atlantic States, said leadership is about training others to support the organization’s mission. “It’s the ability to shape people, to mold them and to hold them up to do their jobs, and not do their jobs for them,” she said. An effective leader must seek input from employees too, said […]

The Impact of COVID-19 on Shared Priorities for International Cooperation in Active and Healthy Aging

The Impact of COVID-19 on Shared Priorities for International Cooperation in Active and Healthy Aging

By ELIZABETH BROWN, CATALYST @ HEALTH 2.0 IN THIS MINI-SERIES, WE WILL BE TAKING A LOOK BACK AT THE IDIH WEEK 2022 USA REGIONAL WORKSHOP, TITLED THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON THE SHARED PRIORITIES FOR INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION IN ACTIVE AND HEALTHY AGING, WITH A DIFFERENT BLOG POST DEVOTED TO EACH OF THE THREE COMMON PRIORITIES THAT WERE REFINED THROUGHOUT THE […]

The Time Has Come for DIY Mandates on Covid

The Time Has Come for DIY Mandates on Covid

Bernard J. Wolfson Here we are in the grip of yet another covid-19 surge, yet most people I see out and about are behaving as if the pandemic is over. And I live in Los Angeles County, whose public health department is arguably one of the most vigilant and proactive in the U.S. We all have pandemic fatigue. Even people […]