SHM & Hospital Medicine in the News: July 21 – August 4, 2016
Check out the latest hospital medicine and SHM-related stories in mainstream and healthcare-centric news coverage. For the full stories, click on the hyperlinks below:
- Medicare’s readmission penalties for hospitals will reach a new high as Medicare withholds more than half a billion dollars in payments over the next year. (Kaiser Health News, 8/2/16)
- CNBC takes an in-depth look at the release of the CMS hospital star ratings and compares them to the S. News & World Report “Best Hospital” rankings, including feedback from hospital and association executives and an overview of how they could impact patients. (CNBC, 7/26/16)
- A Journal of Hospital Medicine research study demonstrates how clinicians can leverage EHR data to reduce alarm fatigue for providers by modifying physiologic bedside monitor alarm limits. (Health Data Management, 7/27/16)
- The CMS is finalizing a controversial 1.5% cut to hospital reimbursement, which aims to recoup approximately $11 billion in overpayments. (Modern Healthcare, 8/3/16)
- Some hospitals continue to shift to a hotel-inspired environment, not only to reduce anxiety among patients, but also to attract patients with private insurance who have a choice in where they receive care. (The New York Times, 8/1/16)
- A regional healthcare outlet included a feature on hospitalists, their history and the need for better work-life balance for the specialty’s sustainability, citing an article from The Hospitalist. (Western Pennsylvania Healthcare News, 8/2/16)
Medicare’s Readmission Penalties Hit New High
The federal government’s penalties on hospitals will reach a new high as Medicare withholds more than half a billion dollars in payments over the next year, records released Tuesday show. The government will punish more than half of the nation’s hospitals — a total of 2,597 — having more patients than expected return within a month. While that is about the same number penalized last year, the average penalty will increase by a fifth, according to a Kaiser Health News analysis.
August 2, 2016
Kaiser Health News
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New Quality Ratings Roil Hospitals, Give Consumers Help
Your local hospital’s new “star” score might surprise you. New overall quality ratings that assign individual hospitals one to five stars based on how well they care for patients were released Wednesday by the federal government, giving consumers a new tool for making health-care choices for themselves and loved ones. A number of prestigious hospitals did not score as high on the new ratings as their reputations, and own websites and marketing materials, might otherwise suggest.
July 27, 2016
CNBC
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Researchers Leverage EHR Data to Reduce Alarm Fatigue
“Our new data-driven alarm parameters for hospitalized children provide a potentially safe means by which to modify physiologic bedside monitor alarm limits, a first step toward customization of alarm limit settings in an effort to mitigate alarm fatigue,” concluded the study published in the Journal of Hospital Medicine.
July 27, 2016
Health Data Management
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CMS Finalizes Controversial Hospital Overpayment Cut
In a final rule released Tuesday, the CMS said it will keep a controversial 1.5% cut to hospital reimbursement. Industry stakeholders had rallied against the move which aims to recoup a total of $11 billion in overpayments. Hospitals expected the cut to remain at 0.8%—as it has been every year since 2014, two years after Congress mandated the CMS to recover funds allegedly lost as a result of incorrect coding on inpatient hospital stays.
August 2, 2016
Modern Healthcare
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With Room Service and More, Hospitals Borrow from Hotels
While clinical care is the focus of any medical center, hospitals have many incentives to move toward hotel-inspired features, services and staff training. Medical researchers say such amenities can improve health outcomes by reducing stress and anxiety among patients, while private rooms can cut down on the transfer of disease. But a big driver of the trend may be hospitals’ interest in marketing — attracting patients with private insurance who have a choice in where they receive care, and encouraging word-of-mouth recommendations.
August 2, 2016
The New York Times
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Excuse Me, Is There a Hospitalist in the House?
The hospitalist position in hospitals is not new. An article from the Las Vegas Business Page states, “The hospitalist movement started when it was coined in the New England Journal of Medicine in 1996,” and it has been growing ever since. One of the main reasons for the growth of the hospitalist physician role is not related at all to healthcare reform. Much of it had to do with lifestyle reform desired by general practice physicians.
August 2, 2016
Western Pennsylvania Healthcare News
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