Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services adjusts payment policies for inpatient rehab, skilled nursing and hospice
“The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced a number of payment and policy changes last week, addressing Medicare inpatient rehabilitation facilities, hospice benefit and skilled nursing facilities. CMS is updating the inpatient rehab facilities prospective payment system payments for fiscal year 2017 to reflect an estimated 1.65 percent increase factor. That’s based on an IRF-specific ...Read More
Doctor devises new database methodology to thwart hackers and end big data breaches
“Longtime healthcare and technology veteran William Yasnoff, MD, has created a personal grid tactic for tuning relational databases to make it harder for hackers to steal large sets of medical records…” Read full article.
Justice Department Moves To Block 2 Big Health Insurance Mergers
“The Justice Department is suing to block two proposed mergers between major health insurance companies, saying the deals violate antitrust laws and would lead to higher health care costs for Americans…” Read full article.
Competition for new docs pushing pay higher
“In some parts of the country, you have to get up early to recruit an orthopedic surgeon—at least 18 to 24 months early. Michael Patterson, CEO of Mississippi Valley Surgery Center in Davenport, Iowa, began recruiting the latest addition to his orthopedic practice while he was still in residency. The new recruit still had a ...Read More
THE METRICS THAT MATTER MOST IN RECRUITING AND RETAINING TOP TALENT
“Recruiting can be a lot like dating. In both scenarios, a lot of variables go into finding “the one.” How much time are you willing to devote to the search? Where can you go to meet the right candidate? How much money are you willing to spend to woo that special someone? But which of ...Read More
HHS funds to help small practices prepare for the MACRA Quality Payment Program
“The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced an initiative June 20 to fund small practices preparing for the Quality Payment Program. The $20 million funding will support on-the-ground training and education for Medicare clinicians in both individual and small group practices of 15 clinicians or fewer – especially in historically under-resourced areas including ...Read More
Limited supply of primary-care docs sparks competition among healthcare providers
“Federally qualified health centers that serve mostly poor and low-income families in distressed or rural communities have always had a tough time recruiting physicians. And now, it’s getting even harder…” Read full article.
FTC appeals Chicago-area merger loss
“The Federal Trade Commission will appeal a judge’s decision to allow a merger between two Chicago-area health systems, the FTC said in court filings Wednesday. The FTC didn’t waste any time deciding to appeal. A federal judge Tuesday denied the FTC’s request for a preliminary injunction to temporarily stop a merger between Advocate Health Care ...Read More
The 50 Most Powerful Questions Leaders Can Ask
“The best leaders don’t engage in monologues; they stimulate conversations. They understand conversations are not competitions to be won, but opportunities to enrich, inspire, challenge, illuminate and learn. So, what makes for great dialogue? Great questions…” Read full article.
The Popularization of Population Health: Enduring Traits & Current Challenges
“Population Health is the latest topic talked about in every innovation and investor setting, yet it has been in the making for decades…” Read full article.
Overtime pay rules will affect millions of healthcare workers
“Millions of full-time healthcare workers will be eligible for overtime pay under a new federal rule that nearly doubled the threshold at which companies can deny it. But not all in the healthcare industry are cheering the news. The new Obama administration rule is expected to affect a total of 4.2 million workers. The increase ...Read More
Illinois state board OKs University of Chicago expansion, trauma center
“The South Side of Chicago might finally get back a trauma center to treat the most severely injured adults. Illinois regulators approved University of Chicago Medicine’s nearly $270 million campus expansion that includes a trauma center. The decision caps a relentless campaign among activists who long have called for such a specialized service in an ...Read More