Budgeting

The expansion of insurance coverage to some 10 million individuals in 2014 has implications for the growth rate in national health expenditures and on health workforce requirements. While there is broad agreement that spending and utilization will be pushed upward, there is much debate about the amounts.

Brad Sinclair has been named chief financial officer for the University of Mississippi Medical Center’s University Hospitals and Health System in Jackson, Mississippi.

The timeworn image of the number-crunching hospital CFO, toiling behind the scenes, has transformed over the past several years into that of a key management figure, deeply entrenched in daily operations and strategic planning.

Consumerism in healthcare is changing the industry, as patients are paying far closer attention to the costs of medical care than in the past. This change will likely shape the top 10 issues faced by providers in 2015, claims a new report by the PwC Health Research Institute.

An increasing number of healthcare organizations are turning to demand forecasting, crunching numbers to help them determine potential device usage, patient demand and even to decide whether or not to build new facilities.

For healthcare financial executives, the integration of a new operation carries many challenges. And not the least is the question of how to compensate physicians who are joining the organization.

Collaboration with university-based business schools can bring a new perspective to hospital and health system problems, especially when trying to introduce new thinking into an organization.

After several years of modest increases, U.S. spending on medications is projected to shoot up by 12 percent this year, pushing the nation's drug bill to between $375 billion and $385 billion.

There's a great deal at stake in hospital sourcing and the management of medical supplies. A focus on lowering costs by standardized purchasing of drugs or devices can't come at the expense of compromising high-quality care.

Most hospitals already have in place plans to cope with disasters such as tornadoes and plane crashes, but the Ebola virus presents a different challenge. Because of the risk and expense involved, a hospital's CFO should be an integral part of Ebola planning and preparation efforts.