Articles and Blogs

NATIONAL 55% of rural hospitals don’t offer obstetric care: Report Academic health systems are scooping up hospitals AHA says Medicare payments to long-term care hospitals are inadequate AHA Warns Hospitals of IT Help Desk Social Engineering Scheme Amazon Pharmacy connects with One Medical Biden administration reinforces reproductive health obligations for payers, providers Cash bonuses... READ MORE

CMS introduced an updated Medicare Cost Report e-Filing system (“MCReF”) and related templates to allow Medicare Part A providers the ability to electronically file to their Medicare contractor supporting documentation in addition to their cost report for fiscal years ending on or after December 31, 2017. This allows the contractor to receive successful MCReF... READ MORE

Hall Render is pleased to announce Sarah Crosby has joined the firm in its Indianapolis office. Sarah Crosby is an experienced attorney who specializes in providing counsel to clients navigating Medicare reimbursement issues. One of her key areas of experience involves handling appeals in front of the Provider Reimbursement Review Board and Federal Court,... READ MORE

NATIONAL 13 major health systems partner with high schools in $250M Bloomberg initiative Acute Hospital Care at Home data released AI can help identify social determinants of health American Hospital Association Sues Over Updated HIPAA Guidance Bill aims to push price transparency to ASCs Billing for patient messages to clinicians is increasing, study finds... READ MORE

Ascension Seton and Acadia Healthcare announced a joint venture to expand access to behavioral health care in Austin, TX. Acadia will construct a 106-bed expansion of the existing acute behavioral hospital, which will increase the total licensed bed count to 196. The commercial real estate market is bracing for a record number of maturing... READ MORE

On December 21, 2023, the Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor and the Treasury (collectively, “the Departments”) released a final rule that sets the applicable fees for participating in the No Surprises Act’s (“NSA”) Independent Dispute Resolution (“IDR”) process. The new administrative fee and IDR entity fee ranges established under the final rule... READ MORE

NATIONAL 60% of health systems considering ASC joint ventures 9% of hospitals had ‘vulnerable’ cash on hand levels in 2022 $3.7B acquisition shakes up urology business AHA comments on proposed Medicare Advantage policies for 2025 Amazon expands healthcare reach with Omada partnership Analysis: 91% of hospitals posting machine-readable price transparency data Biden administration replaces... READ MORE

VMG Health published its Health System Leaders Expectations Survey for 2024. Leaders say physician strategy will be a major area of focus, de novo expansion projects will be a priority in current markets and M&A will continue to be a growth strategy in 2024. Commercial Property Executive released its Medical Office Trends to Watch... READ MORE

Senior Housing News published a list of anticipated trends for 2024, including the potential for larger markets returning to pre-pandemic occupancy, assisted living overtaking independent living as the most prevalent senior housing offering, more operators offering discounts and concessions to residents and the continued rise of luxury senior living accommodations. UC Davis Health and... READ MORE

NATIONAL 12 healthcare trends and issues we are following for 2024 AHA comments on proposed rule to discourage health information blocking Physician acquitted of $15M Medicare fraud conviction Bright Health finalizes MA sale to Molina, amends credit facility Cigna, HCSC in talks for Medicare Advantage deal: WSJ ‘Every hospital that does pediatric care is... READ MORE