St. Louis-based Ascension has reported a $3 billion operating loss on revenues of $28.35 billion in fiscal year 2023 as...

...it struggled to address high operating costs and sustained revenue challenges.

Larry G. Potter

Senior Underpayment Recovery Advisor

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

Text: 1-847-872-4047

Maine health system laying off 31 employees.

 

Lewiston, Maine-based St. Mary's Health System, a member of Knoxville, Tenn.-based Covenant Health, is laying off 31 employees and reducing working hours for additional employees.

In an effort to address financial challenges and ensure long-term sustainability, the health system, which includes a 233-bed acute care community hospital, will also end 2023 with a negative operating margin. The pandemic, low patient numbers and revenue, rising supply and labor costs were also listed as reasons for the layoffs.

The underpayment recovery platform was designed to help hospitals & other medical facilities recoup millions from underpayments by insurers.

They only engage remittance files that clients expect no further revenues. Therefore, their services compliment all other RCM efforts and provides new revenues…100% of the time.

Larry G. Potter

Senior Underpayment Recovery Advisor

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

Services being cut....

 A number of healthcare organizations have recently closed medical departments or ended services at facilities to shore up finances, focus on more in-demand services or address staffing shortages.

Larry G. Potter

Senior Underpayment Recovery Advisor

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

Text: 1-847-872-4047

Denials accounted for 11% of all claims in 2022.

 

 Learn how you can fight the rising tide of bad debt — while keeping patients happy!

Let's start a conversation with the president/owner of our UnderPayment Recovery Platform to see results like this. Purely on a contingency basis on accounts you have given up on.

Larry G. Potter

Senior Underpayment Recovery Advisor

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

Text: 1-847-872-4047

Manual underpayment recovery processes can drag down the bottom line.

Learn how this platform solution can cut denials, boost payments and drive your bottom line, all with no upfront fees. 

Let me set a call with the president/owner of our UnderPayment Recovery Platform to see results like this.

Larry G. Potter

Senior Underpayment Recovery Advisor

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

Text: 1-847-872-4047

HOSPITAL UNDERPAYMENT RECOVERY SYSTEM

 

Larry G. Potter

Senior Underpayment Recovery Advisor

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

Text: 1-847-872-4047

The most successful healthcare organizations are targeting transformation.

Learn how 1,000+ leaders are applying this platform to boost hospital revenue w/o any upfront costs.

Larry G. Potter

Senior Underpayment Recovery Advisor

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

Text: 1-847-872-4047

This is very disturbing!!

12% of U.S. clinicians, care delivery leaders and healthcare executives do not believe their organization's financial health will ever recover to pre-pandemic levels. 

54% of respondents said their organization's financial health is somewhat or significantly worse than before COVID-19, despite rebounding patient volumes.

A fundamental challenge in the healthcare system at large is that the reimbursement mechanisms, which come from the payers, are not keeping up with the cost of healthcare along with millions in underpayments from insurers.

Now, if a hospital or medical center has a minimum $2M annual in payer revenue with their top 3 payers, a new underpayment recovery platform is available with a typical result of 10%-20% of gross payer receipts in recovery.

The owner/president of the platform is ready to have a conversation with you to explain the process and answer any questions you may have.

Larry G. Potter

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

Hospital closures affect both physicians and their patients.

Depending on the local market and the specialty, the physician may have to uproot their family and move to an entirely different area. Patients may lose their physicians and/or access to medical care, especially in underserved/rural areas.

Let's Start a conversation with our owner and you!!

Larry G. Potter

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

Senior Underpayment Recovery Advisor

The Cost of Unclaimed Underpayments: Why Hospitals Fail to Recover Funds Owed by Insurers.

There are a few reasons why hospitals may not pursue underpayments by insurers:

- Administrative Burden - The process of appealing denied claims and pursuing underpayments can be very time-consuming and require a lot of administrative work. Small underpayments may not be worth the effort for hospitals.

- Power Imbalance - Insurers tend to have more power in negotiations than individual hospitals. Hospitals may be hesitant to challenge large insurers out of fear of retaliation or being excluded from provider networks.

- Contractual Obligations - Hospital contracts with insurers often have clauses requiring disputes to be handled through specified appeals processes. Hospitals may be limited in what they can pursue outside of those processes.

- Inconsistent Rules - Billing and reimbursement rules are complex and inconsistent across insurers. Hospitals may lack confidence that underpayments are clearly valid or provable. 

- Financial Resources - Legal action to pursue underpayments can be expensive. Some hospitals may lack the financial resources for prolonged legal battles over small claim amounts.

- Maintaining Relationships - Hospitals have an incentive to maintain positive long-term relationships with major insurers in their regions. They may tolerate some underpayments to avoid jeopardizing those relationships through legal action.

In summary, while underpayment by insurers is an issue, hospitals have to weigh the costs, risks and benefits before deciding to pursue action on any specific claims. The system creates some disincentives for hospitals to aggressively go after underpayments.

Now there is a platform that over 1000 hospitals & medical centers have used for underpayment recovery that is a risk-free addition to their Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) efforts. Their forensic audit is performed on remittances AFTER all other RCM efforts have been completed including other internal or external underpayment recovery efforts. They only engage remittance files that clients expect no further revenues from. 

The typical result is 10%-20% of gross payer receipts in recovery with the only stipulation that they have minimum $2M annual in payer revenue with their top 3 payers.

Let's Start a conversation with our owner and you!!

Larry G. Potter

Senior Advisor

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

Here are some common problems that can occur in hospital revenue cycle management.

 They can include the following:

• Inaccurate coding and billing - If medical codes are incorrect or incomplete, it can lead to denied claims and loss of revenue. Having properly trained coders is essential.
• Long collection times - Slow or inefficient collection of patient payments from insurance companies and patients themselves can tie up funds and hurt cash flow. Average collection times should be closely monitored.
• High denial rates - Denials from insurance companies for various reasons like improper coding, incomplete documentation, lack of pre-authorizations, etc. Denials must be quickly addressed and appealed if necessary.
• Patient registration errors - Inaccurate patient information entered at registration can cause claims to be rejected or sent to the wrong payer. Data entry should be validated.
• Poor charge capture - Failure to record all billable items and services provided during patient care leads to lost revenue. Audits help ensure full charging.
• Lack of pricing transparency - Patients may be unclear on what they will end up owing, especially if they are uninsured or policies have high deductibles/copays. Financial counselors can help provide estimates.
• Failure to verify insurance eligibility - Not checking a patient's active coverage status can mean more claims get denied. Eligibility should be confirmed prior to non-emergency services.
• High accounts receivable days - Letting accounts receivable stretch over 60-90 days can negatively impact cash flow. Close monitoring and follow-up on unpaid claims is essential.

The key is having a well-designed audit system that analyzes every remittance received in a 12-to-24-month period to determine contractual compliance of each reimbursement. 

These case studies demostrate the difference it can make to the bottomline.

Setup a call with the president/owner of our company to review your situation.

Larry Potter

Senior Advisor

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

Text: 1-847-872-4047

Hospital 'business as usual' is eroding your bottom line.

Shore it up an average 22%. (see below)

Larry Potter

Senior Advisor

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

Text: 1-847-872-4047

Hospitals' bottom lines swell after help.

Revenue cycle management has traditionally focused on managing claims and payments after care has been provided. But as payer requirements become more complex, margins tighten and this approach is no longer sufficient. 

Organizations that continue to rely on reactive, legacy RCM processes pay a significant price in foregone revenue.

Look what these four have recouped after a direct call to our president/owner!!

No upfront fees and all recovered revenue goes directly into their accounts!

I will set the call for you right away.

Larry Potter

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

2022 was among the most financially challenging years hospitals and health systems have had to face!

That recovery remains challenging, according to a Sept. 27 report from the American Hospital Association.

Recent reports demonstrate how almost every metric of hospital and health system financial health — including verage debt to cash flow, operating margins, days cash on hand and median cash to debt —  declined last year. Because of that, more than 30 hospitals and health systems that received credit rating downgrades so far this year.

Critics often cherry-pick a select few health systems to make sweeping generalizations about the financial conditions of all hospitals and health systems. As we look back on the last three years, it is clear that 2021 was the eye of the hurricane — a brief period of stability bookended by extreme volatility with more to come!!

$3M lifeline for Greenwood Leflore as supervisors reverse course

The Leflore County Board of Supervisors voted not to allow the hospital to draw on $1 million of credit Sept. 13. The board voted unanimously to reverse that decision Sept. 25 and boosted that number to $3 million, the report said.

The funds should be enough to keep the hospital afloat through the rest of 2023, according to the report. By then, Greenwood Leflore also expects a final decision at the federal level on its application to become a critical access hospital, an application so far denied.

Larry G. Potter

Senior Advisor

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

St. Margaret's Health in Illinois

The CEO, Tim Muntz, has blamed the June closure of St. Margaret’s Health Spring Valley (IL) on the Spring Valley City Bank.

Evidently, the bank "swept nearly $7.3 million" in funds despite a "forbearance agreement" that the two parties entered into 6 weeks earlier. The bank's actions left the hospital "no choice" but to close, Mr. Muntz said in a bankruptcy court filing. 

Mr. Muntz said that the bank swept the funds on June 5 causing the facility to announce its closure on June 12 and officially ceased operations on June 16. 

The hospital filed for bankruptcy Sept 1, while nearby, Peoria, IL-based OSF HealthCare has been attempting to purchase and reopen the closed St. Margaret’s Health Peru (IL) facilities.

It's possible this could have been avoided had the hospital engaged the underpayment recovery program offered by ADHC.

If you would like a direct meeting with the president/owner, send me an email. Thanks!!

Larry G. Potter

Senior Advisor

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

Four things some health system leaders have done to boost the bottom line.

 1. Focusing on our people, our patients, and our communities and acknowledge that at the end of every decision is a person. Remaining viable as a healthcare provider in our communities requires us to identify opportunities to increase efficiencies and sustainable processes.

2. Strengthening its workforce through medical provider retention and recruitment. In addition, enhancing telemedicine strategies to ensure their patient population is able to receive access to medical care wherever they are. 

3. Enhancing and increasing the medical group's contribution to the system's bottom line by increasing access to primary care physician practices through scheduling optimization to ensure patients have a clear and easy pathway to obtain primary care and continuing chronic disease management by leveraging our patient portal and online presence.

4.  Accessing the underpayment recovery platform, which analyzes every remittance received in a 12-to-24-month period to determine contractual compliance of each reimbursement. All done on a contingency basis where there are no upfront fees, costs, ongoing tasks required from clients. See sample below.

Larry G. Potter

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

8 hospitals went bankrupt this year!!

 

A summary of the 8 bankrupt hospitals:

*San Benito Health Care District, CA.

*The Hospital at Westlake Medical Center, a physician-owned hospital in Westlake Hills, Texas.

*Martin General Hospital, a 49-bed facility in Williamston, N.C., suspended operations Aug. 3 and plans to file for bankruptcy.

*Mercy Iowa City filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Aug.7

*Texas hospital, Trinity Regional Hospital Sachse 

*Madera (CA) Community Hospital filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy March 10. 

*Montebello, CA.-based Beverly Hospital filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy April 19. 

*St. Margaret's Health, filed two petitions of Chapter 11 bankruptcy for its St. Margaret's Spring Valley (Ill.) and St. Margaret's Peru (Ill.) facilities. 

ADHC may be able to help your facility, all work is solely on a contingency basis. There are no upfront fees, costs, ongoing tasks required from our clients. We take on 100% of the risk and effort to recovery revenues for our clients. We are only compensated when we successfully recover underpayments.

Text us at 1-847-872-4047

A computer-assisted navigation platform that helps surgeons perform complicated operations

 

The Seattle-based medical technology company Proprio has started training surgeons to use its FDA-cleared device to navigate spinal surgeries through artificial intelligence, augmented reality, and light field.

The technology in Paradigm, a navigation platform, helps surgeons digitally map and visualize the surgery site. It also has the potential to decrease complications and make operations more efficient.

San Antonio-based Methodist Healthcare System invested $75 million to reopen a shuttered San Antonio hospital before the end of the month.

Forest Park Medical Center has been closed since 2015 and the COVID-19 pandemic delayed Methodist's construction and reopening plans. 

After redevelopment, the new Methodist Hospital Landmark location will have 54 beds, 12 operating rooms and 27 private patient rooms. 

The facility will allow them to have more capacity as a system since it happens to be in a growing part of the city of San Antonio.

One can only hope they get enrolled in the underpayment recovery service which would be a risk-free addition to their RCM (Revenue Cycle Management) efforts. This forensic audit is performed on remittances AFTER all other RCM efforts have been completed including other internal or external underpayment recovery efforts. They only engage remittance files that our clients expect no further revenues from. Therefore, our services compliment all other RCM efforts and provides new revenues…100% of the time.

We work solely on a contingency basis. There are no upfront fees, costs, ongoing tasks required from our clients. We take on 100% of the risk and effort to recovery revenues for our clients. We are only compensated when we successfully recover underpayments.

Larry G. Potter

Senior Advisor

Text 1-847-872-4047 for any questions.

Hospitals had a challenging financial year in 2022 as expenses skyrocketed without a similar lift in revenue and reimbursement.

 Key ratios

Source: Moody's Investors Service, "Medians - Operating performance weakens as tough expense environment persists." The report was released Sept. 7, 2023 and includes data from freestanding hospitals, single-state and multistate healthcare systems for the 2022 fiscal year.

1. Operating margin: -0.3 percent

2. Excess margin: 2.4 percent

3. Operating cash flow margin: 4.9 percent

4. Return on assets: 1.7 percent

5. Three-year operating revenue CAGR: 6.5 percent

6. Three-year operating expense CAGR: 7.7 percent

7. Cash on hand: 205.6 days

8. Annual operating revenue growth rate:

9. Annual operating expense growth rate:

10. Total debt-to-capitalization: 31.9 percent

11. Total debt-to-operating revenue: 31 percent

12. Current ratio: 1.7x

13. Cushion ratio: 24.9x

14. Annual debt service coverage: 4.0x

15. Maximum annual debt service coverage: 3.6x

16. Total debt-to-cash flow: 3.6x

17. Capital spending ratio: 1.1x

Over 400 hospitals and medical facilities are now using an underpayment recovery service that is a risk-free addition to their Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) efforts. 

This forensic audit is performed on remittances AFTER all other RCM efforts have been completed including other internal or external underpayment recovery efforts. 

The company only engages remittance files that their clients expect no further revenues from. Therefore, their services compliment all other RCM efforts and provides new revenues…100% of the time.

The Underpayment System historically uncovers 5-30% of commercial payments which have been paid incorrectly on every analysis. Their collection statistics for commercial payer underpayments are 85-90% of identified claims. The majority of contracts allow providers to appeal claims that have been underpaid or paid incorrectly for up to 12 months from the last response by the insurer.

After 12 months, they will expire, at which point hosputals will never be able to bill or collect. This system recovers additional underpayments owed on zero balance accounts. Dollars underpaid after EMR/EHR and billing systems have fully processed claims as “PAID IN FULL”.

Larry G. Potter

Senior Advisor

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

Over 50 hospitals closing departments or ending services...30 minutes might have saved them!!

A number of healthcare organizations (56) have recently closed medical departments or ended services at facilities to shore up finances. 

One, Rumford (Maine) Hospital closed its maternity program March 31 after 97 years in service!!

UChicago Medicine AdventHealth GlenOaks hospital in Glendale Heights, Ill., plans to discontinue its obstetrics services.

Charlotte, N.C.-based StarMed Healthcare announced it was closing two satellite locations July 19.

Many of these could have been avoided by making use of an underpayment recovery program that these hospitals used with all work being performed solely on a contingency basis. How long does it take to complete your analysis audit process?

Minimum facility time is 30 minutes or less to upload 835-electronic billing records through our proprietary encryption platform, which uses the highest HIPAA standards. Once we have received all contracts and data files it typically will take around 14 days to complete the analysis and start the appeals process.

Sample Case Studies:

• 123-bed Texas hospital: $6 million in underpayments through BCBS alone.

• 142-bed Louisiana hospital:  $10 million+ in underpayments for top 4 payors.

• Large Pennsylvania Private Hospital: $1.2 million in underpayments from their 4th largest payer. Represents 18% of their collections for the payer.

• A hospital network: $30 million in underpayments from just three facilities.

• A large Ohio physician group: $7 million in underpayments in BCBS professional alone.

• A Tennessee clinic: $1 to $1.5 million in underpayments per payer contract

• Small Texas Community Hospital: $4,048,555.44 in underpayments from BCBS alone.

• A Missouri hospital: Over $20 million in underpayments

Larry G. Potter

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

Per Newsweek, these are the top 8 smart hospitals in the USA.

 1. Mayo Clinic-Rochester (Minn.)

2. Cleveland Clinic

3. Massachusetts General Hospital (Boston)

4. The Johns Hopkins Hospital (Baltimore)

5. Mount Sinai Hospital (New York City)

6. MD Anderson Cancer Center (Houston)

7. Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (New York City)

8. Brigham and Women's Hospital (Boston)

They are using smart technologies including the use of electronic functionalities, telemedicine, digital imaging, artificial intelligence, and robotics.

Our underpayment recovery service is a risk-free addition to your Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) efforts. Our forensic audit is performed on remittances AFTER all other RCM efforts have been completed including other internal or external underpayment recovery efforts. We only engage remittance files that our clients expect no further revenues. Therefore, our services compliment all other RCM efforts and provides new revenues…100% of the time.

We work solely on a contingency basis. There are no upfront fees, costs, ongoing tasks required from our clients. We take on 100% of the risk and effort to recovery revenues for our clients. We are only compensated when we successfully recover underpayments.

Our results are unrivaled. To date we have analyzed billions of dollars in reimbursements and remittances against 1,000s of unique and often complex payer contracts and have found noncompliance and underpayments for 100% of our clients. The typical result is 10%-20% of gross payer receipts in recovery.

Larry G. Potter

Lgpotter33@gmail.com

 Your Growth ​& Health Are​ Our Business

Tax Incentives | Expense Reduction | Retirement Plans | Corp. Financing | Smart Medical

Several hospitals in Texas have filed for bankruptcy or closed since the start of 2022.

It's shocking to see that Texas has lost more than 20 hospitals since 2005!

The four most recent include:

1. Cleveland (Texas) Emergency Hospital

2. San Antonio-based Texas Vista Medical Center, part of Dallas-based Steward Health Care

3. Trinity Regional Hospital Sachse (Texas) filed for bankruptcy at the end of August.

4. The Hospital at Westlake Medical Center, a physician-owned hospital in Westlake Hills, Texas

It's possible all 20 could have avoided that scenario using the services of  ADHC

This Recovery System consists of a team of payer contract experts and the most advanced forensic audit software system in the healthcare space. Their audit analyzes every remittance received in a 12-to-24-month period to determine contractual compliance of each reimbursement. The team then works with the payers to recover underpayments that are due their clients.

With a 100% success rate their results are unrivaled working solely on a contingency basis.

Contact Larry Potter at Lgpotter33@gmail.com for immediate info, don't wait for the storm to slam into you!!

 Your Growth ​& Health Are​ Our Business

Tax Incentives | Expense Reduction | Retirement Plans | Corp. Financing | Smart Medical

Does technology actually help accountants?

In the accounting world alone over the past decade or so, accountants and CPAs have seen OCR technology, bank feeds, automated transaction recognition, practice management and workflow software and cashflow forecasting tools all become mainstream tools. So why is the accountancy profession busier than ever?

It's probably because the volume of work in their in-tray exceeds the capacity of most firms.

Now, there is a very quick & efficient solution as over 4000 US CPAs are using our proprietary software allows small to mid-sized businesses to take a quick 60-second confidential survey to determine if they qualify for any of these benefits:

*Work Comp Insurance Audit client (can keep current provider)

*R&D Study

*Property Owner Tax Incentives

*Property Taxes Reduction For Commercial Property Owners

*Waste & Recycling

*Cost Segregation

*Parcel Shipping

*Credit Card Audit (client can keep current provider)

*Payroll Tax Incentives

*Commercial Funding

*Stryde Retirement Program (SRP)

*Strategic Partnership

**Hiring & Retaining Employees ($1200 - $26,000 per employee) thru WOTC & ERC for W2 employees

We are now allowing CPAs, accountants and bookkeepers to use our software with the signup fee being waived at http://www.StrydeAdvisors.com/143863

If the link does not work, copy & paste it and then watch the simple training and get in on the Friday 9am CST call for new users.

We do all of the heavy lifting, all you have to do is answer a few simple questions about your client(s) and see their benefits in seconds. You retain full control of your client base while you standout like a rock star!!!

Tax Credits are now a permanent part of financial planning for all businesses.

Here are some key things to know about R&D tax credits:

• R&D tax credits are a tax incentive that allows companies to reduce their tax liability based on qualifying research and development expenditures. The goal is to encourage innovation and technological development.
• In the US, R&D tax credits are available at both the federal and state level. The federal R&D tax credit is available to companies of any size and reduces a company's federal income tax liability.
• To qualify for the federal R&D tax credit, activities must meet the criteria of a systematic process to discover information, involve technological uncertainty, and be intended to develop a new or improved business component. Eligible expenses include employee wages, supplies, and certain contractor costs.
• Companies must carefully document their R&D activities and expenses to support any credits claimed. It's recommended to work with a tax advisor familiar with R&D credits to ensure proper compliance and maximize the credit amount.
• The R&D tax credit is a dollar-for-dollar reduction in tax liability, so it can provide significant tax savings especially for companies with major R&D initiatives. However, there are complex rules around qualifying activities and calculating the credit amount.
• In addition to the current year R&D tax credit, companies may be able to amend prior year returns to claim credits for eligible past R&D expenses. The ability to file amended returns depends on the open tax years under the statute of limitations.

Let's see what your R&D tax credits are!!