MiraMed Global Services Podcast

We seem to be living in the midst of a recurring nightmare.  We’re told one minute that the states are opening back up and that restrictions are easing and that elective surgeries are once again being allowed.  The next minute we’re told some states are experiencing the highest incidence of COVID on record. Hospital administrators must remain circumspect, retaining all their options, realizing that past assumptions and recent projections may not be reliable.  Should elective surgeries continue on their ramp-up schedule?  Should the supply of personal protective equipment (PPE) and ventilators be beefed up or reordered?  What about workforce numbers?

While there were already movers and drivers toward a change in healthcare delivery, there’s nothing like a once-in-a-century health crisis to create the conditions for accelerated change. 

Despite the lingering effects of COVID, a majority of states are in the midst of phased-in or full-blown reopening. This means that many hospitals across the country are at least attempting to ramp back up to normal pre-COVID case levels, including elective surgeries. 

According to a national study undertaken by healthcare consulting firm Kaufman Hall in May 2020, April was a devastating month for hospitals across the country from a financial perspective.  Despite the expectations of some that hospitals would be overflowing with patients due to the spread of COVID, in actuality a sharp decline in overall patient volume was noted.  This, along with a prolonged suspension of so-called elective surgeries, have translated to record-setting declines in hospital revenue.  The following seeks to illustrate the scope of the fiscal damage and to assess where hospitals may go from here.

On May 11, 2020, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released the Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 Medicare Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) and Long Term Acute Care Hospital (LTCH) Proposed Rule.  According to the agency, the proposed rule signals the government’s intention of achieving the following objective: “transforming the healthcare delivery system through competition and innovation to provide patients with better value and results.”  The deadline for submitting comments on the proposed rule is July 10, 2020. 

While rural America has for the most part been able to avoid the brunt of the coronavirus during its initial assault upon our shores, recent reports indicate that the disease is now stalking our smaller towns and communities.  Here are some facts and statistics released by HealthcareDive that may prove instructive:

In the deadly days of World War II, when the Russians were on the brink of defeat at the hands of multiple German army groups spread along a thousand-mile front, factories beyond the Urals managed to mass produce tanks in sufficient numbers to eventually beat back the German advance.  The T-34 main battle tank was an inexpensive, no-nonsense weapon that turned the tide of war.  The Russians’ ability to churn out so many of these bare-bones combat vehicles remains a miracle of modern military history.

Not all news is negative news—even in the healthcare sector. Premium increases and doctor shortages and pandemic scares are the current fair for most American medical executives. It's enough to make a hospital honcho hang his or her head in despair. However, every now then, some dim ray of light shines through the darkness, a small sign that there may be some good news on the horizon for America's hospitals.

From what we’re told by certain medical experts, we are nearing the peak of the national health emergency (NHE) brought on by the coronavirus (COVID) outbreak in the United States. All across the nation, Americans are being tested and temperatures are being taken in an attempt to gauge the health of our citizenry. What this article seeks to explore is the overall health of our hospitals. How are they faring? The fact is the COVID crisis is negatively affecting nearly every sector of our economy, and our health delivery facilities are no exception. The slashing of high-volume, high-acuity cases has left some hospitals on life support, and some are on their deathbed.

According to many sources, America has the highest case count in the world, with nearly 370,000 cases being reported as of yesterday, April 7.  Nearly, 11,000 have died in the U.S. from the effects of the virus.  Leading voices in the medical community have suggested that these next few days are likely to bring a peak in COVID cases, so more will get sick and more will die.  That means our hospitals and hospital workers will continue to operate under very difficult circumstances. 

Six Important Updates

Given the continuing seriousness of the situation, nationally, we felt it might be appropriate to provide some COVID-specific updates to our readers that may prove helpful as they plan for the next stage of this national health emergency (NHE).  Here are six updates as reported on April 7 by Becker’s Hospital Review and other sources: