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AHA, others ask OMB to withdraw Schedule H revisions 02/03/2012
The Internal Revenue Service failed to adhere to the Paperwork Reduction Act when it issued a revised Schedule H incorporating changes under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the AHA, Healthcare Financial Management Association, and VHA Inc. said in a letter yesterday to the Office of Management and Budget. "As a result, the Schedule, and in particular Section V.B. of the Schedule, contains redundancies, inconsistencies, onerous reporting requirements and undefined terms, which compliance with the [PRA] might have eliminated," the groups said. The letter details how the IRS failed to follow PRA procedures in issuing the revised schedule. It asks OMB to direct the agency to withdraw Section V.B. of the schedule or make it optional for 2011 and to issue a "substantially improved" Schedule H form and instructions for OMB review and approval. The ACA imposed additional requirements on hospitals to maintain tax-exempt status, which are codified in IRS Code 501(r). Schedule H Section V.B. attempts to measure a hospital's compliance with the new requirements.
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GAO: Implantable medical device prices vary widely, lack transparency 02/03/2012
Lack of price transparency may hamper hospitals' ability to achieve the best price on implantable medical devices, according to a new Government Accountability Office report to the Senate Finance Committee. Based on Medicare claims data from fiscal years 2004 to 2009 and price information from hospitals and group purchasing organizations, GAO found substantial variation in the amount hospitals pay for selected devices, suggesting some hospitals face challenges in obtaining more favorable prices from the small group of companies that make them. For example, the difference between the lowest and highest price for one model of automated implantable cardioverter defibrillator was nearly $9,000. "To the extent that physicians in the same hospital have different preferences for IMDs, it may be difficult for the hospital to obtain volume discounts from particular manufacturers," the report notes. "Also, confidentiality clauses barring hospitals from sharing price information make it difficult to inform physicians about device costs and thereby influence their preferences." AHA Vice President for Policy Don May said the report "highlights the need for transparency so that hospitals can minimize device costs and have access to devices at the lowest price possible." In related news today, the Internal Revenue Service and Treasury Department issued proposed regulations for the 2.3% excise tax imposed on the sale of certain medical devices under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. AHA is reviewing the proposed rule and will provide more information to members soon.
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CMS launches data preview period for new Medicare efficiency measure 02/03/2012
Hospitals participating in Medicare's inpatient quality reporting program have until March 1 to preview their performance on the new Medicare spending per beneficiary measure and correct any errors before the data is added to the Hospital Compare website in April. The measure, which CMS expects to include in the Hospital Value-Based Purchasing program, assesses Part A and B payments for services provided to a Medicare beneficiary for a period spanning from three days before an inpatient admission to 30 days after discharge. AHA encourages all hospitals to download their hospital-specific performance reports from the My QualityNet website and report any errors or comments to both lgrabert@aha.org and cmsmspbmeasure@acumenllc.com.
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Hospital employment climbs 0.27% in January 02/03/2012
Employment at the nation's hospitals increased 0.27% in January to a seasonally adjusted 4,788,700 people, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. That's 12,700 more people than in December and 95,600 more than a year ago. Without the seasonal adjustment, which removes the effect of fluctuations due to seasonal events, private hospitals employed 4,783,100 people in January - 3,700 more than in December and 95,800 more than a year ago. The nation's overall unemployment rate declined by 0.2 percentage point in January to 8.3%.
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Hospitals add nearly $6.2 billion to Iowa's economy 02/03/2012
Iowa's community hospitals generate more than 136,000 jobs that add nearly $6.2 billion to the state's economy, according to a new report by the Iowa Hospital Association. The state's hospitals provide $3.9 billion in salaries and benefits, and generate another $2.3 billion through other jobs that depend on hospitals. "People are often unaware of the contributions that hospitals make to their local economies, including the number of people they employ, the significance of hospital purchases with local businesses and the impact of their employees' spending for the entire region," said IHA President and CEO Kirk Norris. "Just as no one provides the services and community benefits found at our hospitals, there is also no substitute for the jobs and business hospitals provide and create."
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2009 Schedule H filings show many ways hospitals benefit communities 02/02/2012
Hospitals spend an average of 11.3% of their total expenses on benefits to their communities, according to a new report by Ernst & Young. Based on data from 571 filed Schedule H forms representing approximately 900 not-for-profit hospitals for tax year 2009, the estimate includes benefits such as free care, Medicaid underpayments, community health improvement programs, health research and education, subsidized services, Medicare shortfalls and other community benefits and building activities. Starting in 2009, not-for-profit hospitals were required to file Schedule H with the Internal Revenue Service to show the community benefit they provide. AHA worked with Ernst & Young to collect and analyze the Schedule H data to better understand the diverse ways hospitals serve their communities. "Hospitals provide benefits in a number of ways and offering a complete picture of those benefits will ensure that everyone in the community will gain a better appreciation of the value that hospitals provide," said AHA President and CEO Rich Umbdenstock. "But dollars alone can never tell the complete story of how communities benefit from programs and services that hospitals provide. The AHA believes that communities themselves are in the best position to determine whether the benefits provided by their local hospitals match their needs." The report is available at http://www.aha.org/scheduleh.
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Business group supports mandatory flu vaccination for health care workers 02/02/2012
The National Business Group on Health today recommended that hospitals and other health care facilities require employees to receive an annual flu vaccine to protect patients and other employees from the flu, unless they have a documented medical excuse or religious objections. The AHA Board of Trustees last year approved a policy supporting mandatory patient safety policies that require either flu vaccination of hospital employees or wearing a mask in the presence of patients across health care settings during flu season. At an NBGH briefing today, former AHA Trustee Jeanette Clough, president and CEO of Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, MA, said her hospital last year increased employee vaccination rates to 92% from 70% through a robust vaccination campaign. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an estimated 63% of health care workers had been vaccinated this flu season as of November, up from about half in previous years. NBGH represents more than 340 U.S. employers.
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Hospital CLABSI data added to Hospital Compare 02/02/2012
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services yesterday updated the Hospital Compare website to include hospital-provided data on central line-associated bloodstream infections. Under the inpatient prospective payment system, hospitals must report CLABSI rates for adult, pediatric and neonatal intensive care unit patients to receive a full payment update in fiscal year 2013. Hospitals participating in the hospital quality reporting program that have intensive care units began submitting the data last January to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Healthcare Safety Network. Hospitals that do not have ICU beds currently are not required to enroll in the NHSN.
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IHI leader named 2012 TRUST Award recipient 02/02/2012
Maureen Bisognano, president and CEO of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, will receive the Health Research & Educational Trust's 2012 TRUST Award at the Health Forum/AHA Leadership Summit July 19 in San Francisco. The annual award honors individuals who exhibit visionary leadership in the health care field and symbolize HRET's mission to use research and education to improve health care quality in policy and practice. An instructor of medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston and research associate in the Division of Social Medicine and Health Inequalities at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Bisognano is an elected member of the Institute of Medicine and serves on the Commonwealth Fund's Commission on a High Performance Health System. "With her drive to spread and implement health care improvement throughout the United States and globally, [Maureen] is an incredible voice for patients," said HRET Chairman John O'Brien, president and CEO of UMass Memorial Health Care in Worcester, MA. "Under her leadership, IHI continues to produce seminal information for the health care community, while constantly inspiring, motivating and preparing leaders for change." HRET is an AHA affiliate.
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Oregon hospitals' impact on jobs, economy growing 02/02/2012
Oregon's community hospitals generated 129,370 direct and indirect jobs in 2010, according to a new report from the Oregon Association of Hospitals and Health Systems. That's 3.5% more than in 2009. Every 10 jobs in the acute-care sector are linked, on average, to another 12 jobs elsewhere in the state, according to the analysis by economic research firm ECONorthwest. In addition, the economic activity of hospitals contributed $9.2 billion to the gross state product and nearly $716 million in state and local taxes in 2010, up 3.6% and 2.5%, respectively, from 2009. "In this wavering economy, this is one of the more positive highlights in terms of job growth and economic stability," said ECONorthwest Senior Economist Alec Josephson.
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