Accounting & Financial Management
Healthcare companies on Moody's list of lower-rated companies have about $41.6 billion of outstanding debt, a 28% increase in the past year.
The increasing size of healthcare deal values stemmed primarily from large buyouts, as the average deal size rose roughly 25%.
More substantive improvements occurred in Canada as compared to the U.S., suggesting recommendations work best with policy change.
The monetary figures at stake in each case varied wildly, ranging from $1,600 at the low end to $14 million at the high end.
The average potential surprise bill ranged from $86 for medical imaging specialists to more than $8,000 for surgical assistants.
Multiple factors contributed to the increases, including higher volumes and revenues, despite increases in bad debt and charity care.
With a labor-intensive budgeting process that provided little business value, OSF Healthcare decided it was time to be more flexible.
Surgeons provide only a small share of the postoperative care that is built into the payments they receive from Medicare.
The lack of common terminology, unbundled cost reporting and listing of non-negotiated rates limits the information's value.
In all, 19 of 22 models predicted net savings in the first year after implementation, averaging 3.5% of total healthcare spending.