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10 things you need to know now: How to respond to the new privacy and security provisions of the stimulus bill
Hospitals throughout the U.S. have been forced to reduce their IT budget due to the current economic climate. However, with new mandates from the federal government and new privacy and security issues, hospitals are challenged to do more with less.  Organizations that simply address the new HITECH provisions in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), without consideration of the many new privacy and security rules and regulations, risk creating a patchwork of privacy and security processes and controls that will be less effective and unnecessarily expensive to build and maintain.
Acts of charity: Charity care strategies for hospitals in a changing landscape
Hospital charity care provides millions of the uninsured with free care but courts, government regulators, and community leaders are now questioning the value that society derives from this community benefit. This comprehensive report by PwC's Health Research Institute examines the developing charity care issue, discusses key findings and recommendations and provides strategies for succeeding in this evolving environment.
Behind the numbers: Medical cost trends for 2009
From one year to the next, healthcare costs for employers and their workers always go up. Yet, for the past five years there's been some positive news. The growth rate has been dropping. However, that trend will level off in 2009, according to employers and health plans. The new Health Research Institute (HRI) report, "Behind the numbers: Medical cost trends for 2009", addresses the cyclical nature of the healthcare industry and provides insights into the conflicting factors that are contributing to both cost increases and savings. See Behind the numbers: Medical cost trends for 2009.
Delivering practical improvement with our clients: Organizations can control print and mail spending while minimizing risks
Health plans, property and casualty insurers, and financial services companies spend a significant percentage of their operating budgets for print services. Printing and mailing bills, marketing messages, and claims information to clients or members is an essential business function for these companies. Effectively managing print services benefits large, complex organizations by reducing both the costs and the risks associated with printed communications. See more
Developing a defensible pricing strategy
Through careful modeling, prices and markups on the chargemaster can be set so that there is a clear rationale that makes sense to all stakeholders.
Doing more with less: How can healthcare providers cut IT costs in today's economic climate?
Many healthcare providers have responded to the economic downturn by cutting expenses. However, the Obama administration is pushing healthcare providers to invest more resources to implement electronic health records (EHRs). This situation presents a unique opportunity born out of necessity to simplify and standardize the massive patchwork of IT functions. Organizations that focus on the long-term transformation of their IT infrastructure will likely thrive after the current economic downturn passes. Providers that meet the stimulus bill's directive for EHR adoption will be better positioned in an industry targeted for massive IT growth. These organizations will not only be rewarded with significant short-term benefits, but also will possess the foundation for long-term, sustainable IT cost reduction.
Fair value option considerations: A guide for not-for-profit organizations
PricewaterhouseCoopers is pleased to bring you Fair value option considerations: A guide for not-for-profit organizations. Issued in February 2007, FASB Statement No. 159 (FAS 159), The Fair Value Option for Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities, expands the ability to select fair value as the basis of measurement for certain financial assets and liabilities, referred to as the fair value option (FVO). This guide looks at accounts typically found in the financial statements of not-for-profits organizations (including healthcare, higher education and other not-for-profits) and discusses some of the pros and cons of making FVO elections under FAS 159.See more
 Healthcare policy in an Obama administration: Delivering on the promise of universal coverage
President Barack Obama has pledged to implement multiple changes in our health care system with the goal to increase access and affordability of health care in the United States. This report recognizes the difficulty in developing such reforms in light of current market conditions, the implications reforms could have and provides five suggestions to make health care more affordable. To find out more about how the President proposes to implement changes to the existing health care system and the possible impact of such reforms read, Healthcare policy in an Obama administration: Delivering on the promise of universal coverage.
HealthCast 2010: Smaller world, bigger expectations
Our survey group included a mix of policy makers, health system executives, employers, physicians, insurers and medical supply vendors. In addition, PwC practice leaders interviewed more than 50 thought leaders from seven countries at length about future trends and their implications for the industry's stakeholders.
HealthCast 2020: Creating a sustainable future
In this groundbreaking report, HealthCast 2020, PricewaterhouseCoopers looks at solutions and responses from around the world to the globalization and industrywide convergence of healthcare. What insights, best practices and policy lessons can be learned from experiences in various countries to create a globally sustainable health system? Who, or what, is driving the solutions?
HealthCast tactics: A blueprint for the future
This report suggests tactics for the healthcare industry to employ over the next three to five years. According to HealthCast Tactics, there are significant gaps between what healthcare executives, policy makers and employers rate as important and what is being implemented performance-based reimbursement, privacy, and clinical excellence. The report draws on a survey of more than 650 top executives of hospital systems, payers, governments, medical supply vendors, physician groups and employers.
Hospitals under fire: How to respond to criticism of tax-exempt status
Straight Talk: New approaches in Healthcare.
Impact of FAS 157 on contribution accounting: A guide for not-for-profit organizations
PricewaterhouseCoopers is pleased to bring you Impact of FAS 157 on contribution accounting: A guide for not-for-profit organizations. FASB Statement No. 157 (FAS 157), Fair Value Measurements, is a broad principle-based standard that provides a consistent model for determining fair value measures. Using a case study format, this guide provides a high-level overview of the FAS 157 framework and then explores how FAS 157 could be applied by not-for-profit organizations (including healthcare, higher education and other not-for-profits) to contribution-related fair value measurements. See more
 Keeping score: A comparison of pay-for-performance programs among health plans
In order for providers to improve quality and make sustainable changes in the delivery of care, they must have specific incentives to do so. Pay-for-performance programs are an important tool to link financial payment with quality improvement. If P4P is to succeed in significantly moving the needle on quality, we ultimately need an all-payer approach, wherein providers face the same metrics and incentives for all their patients, regardless of their insurance coverage.
Outsourcing in the business office increases cash
Straight Talk: New approaches in Healthcare
Proposals to policy: A national conversation on healthcare reform
Susan Dentzer, editor-in-chief of Health Affairs and health correspondent of The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, moderated a panel of healthcare experts, economists and lawmakers as they discussed President Obama's health care reform proposals. This broadcast was recorded from the National Press Club, Washington, D.C. on November 20, 2008.
PwC Straight Talk on creating a climate of innovation: Healthcare industry leaders discuss what they're doing to nurture innovation
The United States faces another political season, and, likely, a volatile debate about what can be done to improve the current health system. Everyone agrees that the current path is not sustainable, and is fracturing around access, affordability and quality. Failure is not inevitable; in our global research report, HealthCast 2020: Creating a sustainable health system, PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Health Research Institute identified "Climate of Innovation" as one of the key features needed for sustainability.
Revenue cycle: Unique parts working together for the greater good of the hospital.
Tuning up your revenue cycle isn't as complicated as you may think.
Rock and a hard place: An analysis of the $36 billion impact from health IT stimulus funding
By injecting $36 billion in health IT through the stimulus fund, the federal government hopes to create a digital healthcare infrastructure that reduces costs and improves quality. Hospitals and physicians that want the stimulus money will find they have little choice but to comply with the new requirements or suffer future shortfalls in Medicare reimbursement.
The price of excess: Identifying waste in healthcare spending
More than half of the $2.2 trillion spent annually on healthcare in the US could be considered wasteful, according to an analysis published by PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Health Research Institute. Defensive medicine, such as redundant, inappropriate or unnecessary tests and procedures, was identified as the biggest area of excess, followed by inefficient healthcare administration and the cost of care necessitated by conditions such as obesity, which can be considered preventable by lifestyle changes.
Top eight health industry issues in 2008
Health organizations face a pivotal year in 2008 as they anticipate the wildcard outcome of the presidential election. Meanwhile, they must prepare for impending changes — pharmaceutical and life sciences companies are adapting to a new safety agenda from the FDA including the agency's expanded authority over post-market drug safety. See more
 Top nine health industry issues in 2009
In 2009, external forces will compel health industry organizations to react to new financial realities, regulations, and technology. Chief among those forces will be the effects of the economic crisis, a new president and Congress, and financial and technology companies looking to extend their reach into the health industry.  PricewaterhouseCoopers' report from the Health Research Institute (HRI) identifies nine significant issues that will shape the health industry in 2009.  To find out more about these nine issues and their implications read, Top nine health industry issues in 2009.
 Transforming healthcare through secondary use of health data
This report, Transforming healthcare through secondary use of health data, addresses a key challenge the industry faces - leveraging the vast amount of electronic data which will result from current investments in IT to implement electronic health records. Despite these challenges, the opportunity for the industry to cut cost and improve care will drive innovation and collaboration in secondary use of data.
What employers want from health insurers – now
Studies show that most employers are satisfied with their health benefits and want to continue providing these benefits to their employees. However, employers' expectations of their health insurers are changing, and while many studies in the past have examined the relationship between employees and their employer-sponsored benefits, less is known about employers and what they want from insurance carriers. To find out more about the evolving attitudes US employers have regarding health insurers read, What employers want from health insurers - now.
 You get what you pay for: A global look at balancing demand, quality, and efficiency in healthcare payment reform
As the pressure to control health spending increases, payers, governments, and providers are compelled to scrutinize the quality and amount of care they'll be able to deliver in the future. Health leaders around the world see the health payment system as one of the best tools in managing this challenge and achieving sustainability. However, with less than 40% of those same leaders ranking their existing payment system as good, every country has room to improve and can benefit from shared best practices. See You get what you pay for: A global look at balancing demand, quality, and efficiency in healthcare payment reform.