Becker's Hospital Review

23 CFO / FINANCE 14% of hospitals comply with price transparency, survey finds: 4 things to know By Marissa Plescia I n a survey of 1,000 hospitals published in February, 14.3 percent were compliant with the federal price transparency rule that took effect Jan. 1, 2021, a report from patientrightsadvocate.org found. Under the rule, hospitals must post all prices online in an easily accessible format. In the survey, the organization analyzed the websites of 1,000 licensed, randomly selected hospitals in the U.S. First, 500 were selected for a July 2021 report, and an additional 500 were selected for this report. Four things to know: 1. About 38 percent of hospitals post an ade- quate amount of negotiated rates. More than half are not compliant in other areas of the rule, like rates by each insurer and named plan. 2. None of Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Health- care's 188 hospitals were compliant. One of Chi- cago-based CommonSpirit Health's 88 hospitals was found compliant, and one of St. Louis-based Ascension's 85 hospitals was found compliant. e three systems had a combined total revenue of about $120 billion in 2021; the cost of com- pliance with the rule is $12,000 per hospital, ac- cording to the report. 3. e most common act of noncompliance was not posting prices or incomplete posting of all negotiated prices for each item or service from the hospital's accepted payers and plans. 4. e July 2021 report found that 5.6 percent of 500 hospitals were compliant. "Unfortunately, the vast majority of hospitals remain noncompliant aer more than a year has passed since the Hospital Price Transpar- ency rule took effect," Cynthia Fisher, founder and chair of patientsrightsadvocate.org, said in a Feb. 10 news release. "Hospitals' omission of comparative price information in advance of care blocks consumers from benefiting from knowing the competition, seeking fair and equitable prices, and having the choice to lower their costs." n Tenet calls off Conifer spinoff By Marissa Plescia D allas-based Tenet Healthcare announced March 1 it will not pursue a spinoff of its revenue cycle division, Conifer Health Solutions. The decision was made based on a review by Tenet's board of di- rectors and independent legal and financial advisers, Tenet said. Factors contributing to the decision include: • Major financial improvements of Tenet and Conifer • Expectations that Conifer will provide revenue growth in fiscal year 2022 • Anticipated benefits from improved commercialization efforts, new sales talent and technology, and a focus on point solutions • Prospective growth within Conifer's pipeline Tenet said this was a possibility in its fourth-quarter earnings call Feb. 8. "We have achieved significant operational and financial progress within Conifer in the last few years and dramatically improved Tenet's profile across key financial metrics like adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization; free cash flow; and net debt leverage," said Ron Rittenmeyer, executive chair of Tenet. "We believe that continu- ing to build on our progress with Conifer will provide greater returns for Tenet's shareholders." n 10 years in the making, $700M Chicago hospital approved By Marissa Plescia C hicago-based St. Anthony Hospital received approval from the City Council to move to a new location on Chicago's South Side, despite concerns from residents that it will gentrify the community and raise prices, Block Club Chicago reported Jan. 26. Protesters interrupted a November meeting on the project, Block Club reported Nov. 19. Others say the development would benefit the Little Village neighbor- hood and bring hundreds of jobs, as it will also provide child care options, a vocational school, community market, restaurants, affordable housing and more, ABC 7 reported Jan. 26. The project will be on about 30 acres and will be called the Focal Point Community Campus. The estimated cost of the project is $700 million, and the hospital will have 12 stories and 151 beds, the Chicago Sun-Times reported Jan. 25. "We started this project about 10 years ago and it's been the hardest journey I've ever taken in my career," said Guy Medaglia, CEO of Chicago Southwest Development Corp., which is managing the project, according to Block Club. "I'm thrilled about the support this project has received from the community, our elected officials and even from individuals outside the state." Construction is expected to start in 2023 and is slated for completion in 2026, according to Block Club. n

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