Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/821337
23 CFO / FINANCE Why Spring is the Optimal Time for Patient Collections By Kelly Gooch M edical practices seeking to maximize revenue should do everything they can to collect patient pay- ments in the first three months of the year, an athenahealth analysis suggests. For the analysis, researchers examined 3.2 million visits by commercially insured patients to cardiology and orthopedic spe- cialists in 2015. The analysis found patient ob- ligation was highest in January, with 53 percent of visits reim- bursed, followed by February (45 percent) and March (43 percent). In comparison, patient obligation was 25 percent for visits held in December. Athenahealth said this is likely because most pa- tients haven't reached their de- ductibles early in the year. The analysis also found patient payments peaked in March at $17.1 million. That compared to $12.9 million in December and $13.2 million in January. At the same time, reimbursement owed to providers from insurers and patients increased over the year, according to the analysis. Beginning in January, the reim- bursement per visit was $141 and increased to $153 in February and $155 in March. By Decem- ber, the reimbursement per visit was $197. Athenahealth said this may be because patients wait to receive expensive care until they have reached their deductibles. In light of these findings, ath- enahealth concludes providers should always have skilled finan- cial counselors in place — but this is especially important earlier in the year. n $1M Infusion Allows California Hospital to Avoid Closure — For Now By Ayla Ellison S ebastopol, Calif.-based Sonoma West Medical Center was able to keep its doors open due to a last-minute $1 mil- lion infusion from Durall Capital Holdings, a Sunrise, Fla.-based hospital and laboratory operator. However, the hospital's financial troubles aren't over. Sonoma West Medical Center began preparing to shut down on April 4. e hospital stopped accepting new patients, and emergency crews told e Press Democrat ambulances were be- ing diverted from the hospital. "We were anticipating closure," Dennis Col- thurst, president of the Palm Drive Health Care District board told e Press Democrat. "We were ready to pull the trigger." Sonoma West Medical Center was able to avoid closure aer Durall Capital Holdings agreed to make a $1 million capital investment in the hospital. At an April 5 meeting with the Palm Drive Health Care District, which owns SWMC, hospital interim CEO and COO John Peleuses said Durall Capital Holdings will take over management of the hospital's laboratory services with hopes of turning a profit. e hospital will use the funds from Durall to pay debts owed to key vendors and keep the facility running. "We are not out of the woods yet, but we have some breathing room," Mr. Peleuses said at the April 5 meeting, according to e Press Democrat. Although the hospital is open, no surgeries could be performed there as of April 5 because its anesthesiologists quit the day before. Mr. Peleuses said hospital officials will try to get the anesthesiologists, who are owed $146,000 by SWMC, to come back to work, according to the report. Sonoma West Medical Center, formerly Palm Drive Hospital, has faced financial troubles for years. e hospital closed in April 2014 aer a duo of bankruptcy filings but resumed business in October 2015 aer a strong push by local residents to reopen the facility. It was not long before the hospital began struggling financially. In February 2016, the hospital re- ported it was not bringing in enough revenue to cover its expenses. With the goal of improving its financial per- formance, Sonoma West Medical Center en- listed the help of Pipeline Health, a healthcare management company that owns and operates hospitals in California and Washington, D.C. Pipeline ended its contract with Sonoma West Medical Center in March, with the hospital owing it about $800,000. As of February, the hospital's outstanding bills totaled roughly $6.8 million, according to the report. n Partners HealthCare to Shutter Union Hospital in 2019 By Kelly Gooch N orth Shore Medical Center in Salem, Mass., which includes two campuses and is part of Boston-based Partners HealthCare, plans to close Union Hos- pital in Lynn, Mass., in October 2019, NSMC confirmed April 7. The closure is part of Partners HealthCare's restructuring efforts. As part of the re- structuring, inpatient services at the Union Hospital campus will be consolidated at NSMC Salem (Mass.) Hospital, which will undergo a $207 million expansion. The expansion project at Salem Hospital includes an emergency room and 24 med- ical/surgical beds, according to a report on itemlive.com. The effort will also include a renovation of the former Spaulding North Shore Rehabilitation Hospital for the expansion of inpatient adult, pediatric and geriatric mental health services. In addition to the planned Union Hospital closure, NSMC also eliminated approxi- mately 5 percent of staff positions as part of a cost-cutting plan. The medical center recorded a $48 million loss in fiscal year 2016. n