Washington Healthcare News Archive of Prior Editions
New! January 2009 Edition: DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN
CMS Changes Rules for Diagnostic Testing Arrangements (Again)
It is becoming an annual event. Once again the new year brings rule changes from CMS modifying how physician groups may provide and bill for in-office diagnostic tests.
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December 2008 Edition: Stevens Hospital: Not So Typical and Rather Remarkable
Stevens Hospital is located just north of Seattle in Edmonds, Washington. Like many Washington State hospitals, the competitive issues facing Stevens are different than those faced by hospitals in other parts of the country.
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November 2008 Edition: Your Insurance Broker: Providing Value Beyond Just Finding Carriers
Even though current financial markets are in a state of flux, and floods and hurricanes have recently wreaked havoc on Midwestern and Southern Communities, the insurance industry is still flush with capacity.
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October 2008 Edition: Third Party Administrators - Service Providers to Self-Funded Health Plans
The topic of Third Party Administrators of health benefits directly relates to self-funding of health benefits.
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September 2008 Edition: Community Health Centers Proffer a Comprehensive Plan to Provide Care
For more than four decades, America's Community Health Centers have put care first, serving those who need care regardless of insurance status or ability to pay.
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August 2008 Edition: New Washington State Law to Create Challenges for HR Executives
Most employer-sponsored group health plans offer coverage for employees, their spouses and dependent children.
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July 2008 Edition: In Touch and Inspired - Health Care Facility Design has a New Face
Health care facilities traditionally haven't been places people look forward to visiting.
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June 2008 Edition: Grandview's Birch Street Clinic: Rural Health Care Measures Up
Grandview, in the heart of Yakima Valley, boasts a growing community of 8,700 and truly grand views of Mt. Rainier and Mt. Adams.
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May 2008 Edition: Inland Northwest Health Services Connects Washington - Grows Nationally
When I first met Kalen Privatsky, President of the Washington State Medical Group Management Association, he told me that health care facilities in eastern Washington had a better infrastructure in place for information sharing with hospitals than health care facilities in western Washington.
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April 2008 Edition: Health Insurance Industry Profits Down in 2007: Executives Explain Why
Financials from Washington State insurers came in this month and it's evident that the real estate and mortgage industries weren't the only ones feeling the pinch after a rocky 2007.
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March 2008 Edition: Health Care in Crises: Perspectives of Rural Hospital CEOs
Rural hospitals face difficult times. Patient health status and mix, access to capital, staffing constraints, coordination of care with urban hospitals and other providers, and the percentage of uninsured relative to insured are serious challenges testing some of our most seasoned hospital executives.
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February 2008 Edition: Cures for our Ailing Healthcare System
Clearly change is necessary, the current system is not cost effective. However, a dramatic overhaul of the current system is not necessary, nor wise.
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January 2008 Edition: Legislators Rank Cost Greatest Concern of Washingtons Health Care System
Should the health care industry be concerned that both state legislative bodies and both major political parties identify cost as the greatest concern facing the Washington State health care system?
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December 2007 Edition: Practice Administrators of Today: Champions of Challenge and Change
Sally just returned from a negotiation meeting with a large healthcare organization.
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November 2007 Edition: Providence Health & Services: Evaluating Our Largest Hospital System
Most of the hospitals and hospital systems in Washington State are medium sized organizations that serve relatively small catchment areas.
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October 2007 Edition: Community Health Centers - Growing from Movement to Mainstream
Working with community health centers (CHCs) for the past 25 years has convinced me that the existing health center model should be available to everyone in our country.
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September 2007 Edition: Carrier and Administrator Choices Abundant in Washington State
The major components of the Washington State health care system include:
- Purchasers
- Providers
- Carriers and administrators
Purchasers include consumers, employers, government, insurance brokers and agents as well as others. These are the people and organizations that negotiate payment and/or pay for health care services.
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