Budgeting

Net revenue from patients is dipping for some acute care hospitals in Pennsylvania compared to three years ago, while operating margins are climbing, according to a new report from the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council.

The study sought to measure whether having access to such a tool, and with it more price information, was associated with a reduction in annual outpatient spending in the first 12 months after the tool was introduced.

The cost of long-term, in-home care is greatly underestimated, says a new study from insurance holding company Genworth Financial. In fact, most Americans underestimate the cost by close to 50 percent.

Instead of slashing jobs to cut costs and increase profits, hospitals should focus on delivering high-quality customer experiences to widen their margins. That's the word from a new study released by Accenture, which shows that hospitals who delivered superior customer experiences increased their net margins by 50 percent over average-performing facilities.

The study measures how many people were hospitalized between 2002 and 2012 because they were abusing heroin or prescription painkillers, and how many of them got serious infections related to their drug use. It also tracks what hospitals charged to treat those patients and how the hospitals were paid.

Authors liken drug loans to mortgages, noting that both can enable consumers to buy big-ticket items requiring a hefty up-front payment that they could not otherwise afford.

A recent American Journal of Managed Care study has confirmed prices for care in a hospital outpatient department tend to be higher than those for the same service performed in a physician's office.

Population health management is fast becoming a priority for healthcare providers, but many are still figuring out which technology partners are best suited to help them fuel data-driven initiatives, according to a new 2015 Population Health Study by HIMSS Analytics.

Medical practices across the U.S. are now spending a lot more on technology this year, up nearly 34 percent from four years ago, according to a new MGMA report.

Humana and HCA have come to a resolution, for the time being at least. It's not clear what Aetna's takeover bodes for Florida hospitals.