The Trustee Quarterly Newsletter for Spring 2024 is now available with the focus on the American Hospital Associations (AHA) Environmental scan, in addition to using advocacy to shed light on the state of healthcare in South Dakota.
Each year AHA publishes it’s Environmental Scan, including wide-ranging data and trends to help health leaders understand current issues in the healthcare environment. Comprehensive scan is a valuable tool for strategic thinking, but the abundance of data can be overwhelming. This
story provides high-level insights from the AHA scan, with questions for boards to consider as they prepare their own strategic plans.
Financial Stability:
More than half of hospitals ended 2022 operating at a financial loss, and the first quarter of 2023 saw the highest number of bond defaults among hospitals in more than a decade. In 2023, hospitals began experiencing some improvements in financial health. Predictions are positive but workforce is a major factor, according to Moody’s Investor Services, which revised its’ 2024 outlook for the healthcare sector from negative to stable. Billing and Insurance is resource consuming. Administrative costs comprise almost one-third of total healthcare spending, and he vast majority of those expenses (82%) is attributed to billing and insurance. Also included in the report:
- Reimbursement Costs do NOT cover Expenses.
- Care Redesign in Happening
- Rural Hospitals Face Unique Financial Pressures
As board members, there are financial stability questions to consider, including:
- What is our organization’s financial outlook for the next two years?
- Does our board understand the major financial factors at play?
- How does that influence our mission and strategic thinking?
- What does our CFO “lose sleep over”?
- How is care redesign happening in our local area?
- Are we proactive or reactive in the changes taking place as consumer preferences change?
Understanding the state of healthcare across not only the nation but here at home in South Dakota is important as boards look to decision making. New and old policies decided on at the legislative level help shed light on the future of healthcare. SDAHO’s advocacy team has been a vocal supporter of the healthcare community and the members served through highly engaged advocacy efforts.
The 2024 South Dakota Legislative Session runs January through March. Each year after the session has concluded, it’s important our members understand legislation that became law and the impact that may have on the healthcare community. SDAHO can do this through the Legislative Impacts Brief. Jacob Parsons, SDAHO’s Director of Advocacy and Reimbursement, is responsible for the brief. “Each year we provide a legislative impact brief, which gives a description of bills that became law that have an operational impact on our members. The brief
provides an anticipated impact it may have to health care providers.”
Member Hospital and Long-Term Care Administrators can examine the yearly legislative impact brief to better understand changes that may be coming to the healthcare community. “Throughout the entire run of session, we are working with our Public Policy Council, which consists of SDAHO members that provide direction on whether to support, oppose, monitor or remain neutral on bills.” Jacob Parsons – Dir. Advocacy & Reimbursement, SDAHO
SDAHO members can view the 2024 Legislative Impact Brief here.
Recently, SDAHO traveled to Washington, D.C. to take part in the Patient Quality of Life Coalition Lobby Day. The reason for the visit was to show support for Senate Bill 2243, the Palliative Care and Hospice Education and Training ACT (PCHETA). South Dakota Senator Mike Rounds is a co-sponsor of this bill.
To learn more about SD 2243 click here.
For more Trustee resources, visit our Trustee Resource Center.
