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The current recession is hitting every sector of the economy, and health care is no exception. In addition to the financial woes that are affecting many companies, health care providers are facing a second threat the increased risks and liabilities that stem from the way people respond to their own money problems. Health care risk managers should be on the lookout for those recession-related risks and do what they can to minimize the damage.
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Like most risk managers, you've probably been pushing extra hard to improve safety over the last few years, and The Joint Commission says all the hard work is paying off.
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Two recent settlements could have an impact on how health providers do business. In the first case, two Illinois hospital systems have agreed to settle lawsuits alleging that they overcharged thousands of uninsured patients and provided inadequate financial assistance.
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The air ambulance program at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, NC, goes beyond the minimum requirements in an effort to make its medical helicopters as safe as they can be.
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The struggling economy makes William J. Spratt, JD, a health care attorney with K&L Gates in Miami, worry about the effect on health care providers.
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Fewer resources, service discounts, high deductibles, transparency, increased market competition, and increases in the uninsured population. These factors make it "ever so critical to collect during the upfront processes."
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Patient care and business priorities can co-exist as equal partners, says Jodie Martin, director of hospital admitting at University of Kentucky (UK) HealthCare in Lexington, but "it's up to the patient access manager to facilitate that partnership."
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This is a two-part series on use of performance indicators in patient access. This month, we cover their benefits and how to develop the most effective scorecards.
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Due to the economic downturn, patient access departments are being asked to maintain programs with fewer resources and do more with less. Technology investments are being put off, and staff in some cases are being cut.
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Patient access departments are increasingly focused on upfront collections. Yet staff thrust in this new role often are somewhat uncomfortable with asking patients for money.