September 20, 2013-National Health Expenditure Projections, 2012–22

Provider Advisory Weekly Top Stories

1. With Obamacare coming, 30-plus N.J, Pa, and N.Y. hospitals form alliance
2. Maine pays off nearly $500M debt owed to hospitals
3. Two Houston CHRISTUS hospitals soon to join Houston Methodist
4. New Data On Physician Practice Arrangements
5. Bundled Care: The Opportunities and Challenges for Providers
6. Ministry Health Care Joins Quality Health Solutions
7. National Health Expenditure Projections, 2012–22
8. Hixny Joins Upstate RHIO’s to Connect 5.4 million New Yorkers
9. Cleveland Clinic Trims Budget to Corral Costs Before Obamacare

Driven by the demands of the Affordable Care Act, about 30 hospitals in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York’s Hudson River Valley have banded together to form what its founders describe as the largest alliance of health systems in the country, The Star-Ledger has learned. AllSpire Health Partners, comprised of seven hospital systems worth a combined $10.5 billion including Atlantic Health, Hackensack University Health Network and Meridian Health in New Jersey will formally announce the agreement Thursday. Many… NJ   (9/18)  Share: Forward | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIN

Gov. Paul LePage said on Wednesday that the state has paid its hospitals nearly $500 million for unpaid Medic-aid services, ending a long-standing debt the Republican governor says has been financially crippling for the state’s hospitals and Maine’s economy. LePage ceremoniously handed checks to hospitals officials at the Inland Hospital in Waterville and Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston, marking a significant occasion for LePage, who made paying back the hospitals one of his top legislative priorities… SFGATE   (9/18)  Share: Forward | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIN

Two Houston area CHRISTUS hospitals, CHRISTUS St. Catherine and CHRISTUS St. John, will join Houston Methodist when a new partnership between the two faith-based health systems is finalized. This week, the boards of CHRISTUS Health and Houston Methodist took the first step, entering into a letter of intent to transfer majority ownership of the two CHRISTUS hospitals to Houston Methodist. The transaction also includes the CHRISTUS Provider Network clinics in the Katy and Nassau Bay areas and the CHRISTUS Stehlin… houstonmethodist.org   (9/18)  Share: Forward | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIN

A recent study from the AMA shows that the demise of the independent practice isn’t as precipitous as previously reported. A 2012 AMA survey found that 53 percent of physicians are self-employed, 60 percent work in practices that are wholly owned by physicians and 18 percent are in solo practice. The AMA survey does show that there has been a shift toward hospital employment, just not as much as expected. Twenty-three percent of physicians work in practices that are partially owned by a hospital and another 5.6 percent… MNMED   (9/19)  Share: Forward | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIN

Bundled care is one approach to extending health care to all Americans at affordable prices with no sacrifice in quality. This is the second in a series of Booz & Company articles on bundled care. The first dealt with consumer perceptions of bundles, and this Perspective presents survey data from providers: physicians and hospitals… Booz   (4/1)  Share: Forward | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIN

Ministry Health Care, the second largest health system in Wisconsin, is joining Quality Health Solutions, Inc. (QHS), a collaborative group of Wisconsin health care systems and the Medical College of Wisconsin. QHS, which last week announced a major shared savings initiative with UnitedHealthcare, is expanding its accountable care network. The network is clinically integrated, allowing it to contract directly with health plans on behalf of its members for shared savings, pay-for-performance, and other innovative payment programs… ministryhealth.org   (9/17)  Share: Forward | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIN

Health spending growth through 2013 is expected to remain slow because of the sluggish economic recovery, continued increases in cost-sharing requirements for the privately insured, and slow growth for public programs. These factors lead to projected growth rates of near 4 percent through 2013. However, improving economic conditions, combined with the coverage expansions in the Affordable Care Act and the aging of the population, drive faster projected growth in health spending in 2014 and beyond. Expected growth… healthaffairs.org   (9/13)  Share: Forward | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIN

In an unprecedented collaboration, four upstate New York Regional Health Information Organizations (RHIO) announce new connectivity which will allow for the secure exchange of electronic medical records amongst Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse and Albany healthcare professionals. This new connected capability between the upstate RHIOs allows providers to securely share 5.4 million patient health records and links 110 hospitals in a 44-county region. This will support patients who seek medical attention outside of… hixny.org   (9/13)  Share: Forward | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIN

The Cleveland Clinic, one of the world’s foremost medical and research centers, is cutting costs and trimming its $6 billion annual budget as patients and providers grapple with health care changes in the U.S. The clinic plans to shave 5.5 percent from its yearly spending by tightening operations budgets for things liketravel, filling vacancies only where necessary and combining services in areas where there are overlapping offerings, said spokeswoman Eileen Sheil. The clinic will offer early retirement to 3,000 employees and… bloomberg.com   (9/19)  Share: Forward | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIN

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