Guest: Phillip Morris, Partner & Leads Strategic Insights Practice, LSG In this episode: It is only January, but the campaign season is already in full swing. From the White House to control of Congress - power in Washington is up for grabs. In this episode, Chip Kahn talks with Phillip about what issues matter most to voters and where health care fits into that list of priorities. Topics they examine include: Most important issues to likely voters in this year's election - inflation...
Jan 18, 2024•24 min•Ep. 80
Chip and Dr. Liz Fowler, Deputy Administrator of CMS and Director of the agency’s Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI), discuss CMMI’s mission to improve health outcomes, overcome the obstacles to health equity, and reduce care costs. They look back on what CMMS has accomplished in its first 10 years, what we have learned from this experimentation, and the future of care and payment innovation. Topics they examine include: CMMI’s successes over the last decade and what programs hav...
Dec 07, 2023•23 min•Ep. 79
In this episode: As we recognize Rural Hospital Week 2023, Chip and Alan Morgan, CEO of the National Rural Health Association, discuss the importance of having medical care 30 miles or 30 minutes away and the battle to maintain patients’ access to vital services in small communities across the country. They also examine the ways lawmakers can throw a lifeline to hospitals struggling to keep their doors open. Topics include: Growing health care workforce shortage in rural areas Rural hospital clo...
Nov 13, 2023•15 min•Ep. 78
In this episode: Chip and Dr. Sammie Mosier, SVP & Chief Nurse Executive at HCA Healthcare, discuss the growing health care workforce crisis in health systems – from how it is affecting care at the bedside to developing cutting-edge programs aimed at training the next generation of nurses. Topics they examine include: COVID-19’s lasting impact on nursing Using innovative care models and virtual nursing to improve patient care Ways to increase enrollment at nursing schools Prioritizing nu...
Sep 06, 2023•25 min•Ep. 77
In this episode: Chip and Marty Bonick, President and CEO of Ardent Health Services, discuss how cutting-edge technology is reshaping the health care system - by treating patients like consumers, and doing it while improving quality and cutting costs. Topics they examine include: Prioritizing patient centered care and cost containment Embracing disruptors - Using technology to make care more accessible Impact of AI, machine learning on the patient experience Transforming from a hospital system t...
Aug 02, 2023•21 min•Ep. 76
Chip and Dr. Lynn Blewett put a spotlight on Medicaid, which is now the largest government-funded health program in the nation – covering more people than even Medicare. Crucial topics they discuss include: The current state of the Medicaid program and where it is headed in the future. Medicaid redetermination has led to more than a million people being disenrolled from the program. What is the redetermination process and why has it risen to such importance this year? Significance of health plan...
Jun 21, 2023•29 min•Ep. 75
In this episode: Chip sits down with Wendell Primus, former Senior Policy Advisor on Budget and Health Issues to Speaker Nancy Pelosi, to discuss: The current state of the Affordable Care Act – have the effects met the expectations when the law passed 13 years ago? The lasting impact of recently passed drug reform legislation on Medicare and beneficiaries Many are pushing for health care price transparency – will it be transformative? How insurer consolidation – both vertical and horizontal – wi...
May 17, 2023•24 min•Ep. 74
In this episode: What is prior authorization and how does the process work in the real-world. Startling results of a recent American Medical Association physician survey highlighting the negative impact of prior authorization on patient care: 94% of physicians report that prior authorization delayed access to necessary care for patients; 89% report prior authorization had a negative impact on patient outcomes – sometimes even leading to death. Effects of additional administrative burden prior au...
Apr 13, 2023•18 min•Ep. 73
In this episode: Why non-compete clauses are important in health care setting. How proposed rule from Federal Trade Commission (FTC) banning employers from using non-compete clauses on employees could impact patients’ access to care. The additional burden new non-compete rule could have on tax-paying systems. Effect of FTC’s increased scrutiny on health systems integration. Repercussions of slowing integration on access to hospital care in rural areas. Guest: Dr. Subbu Ramanarayanan chairs NERA’...
Mar 08, 2023•29 min•Ep. 72
In this episode: What are the prospects of McCarthy Speakership? Functionality of Washington with divided government? Comparing similarities/differences between the House in the late 1990s and now. Discuss Speaker Gingrich’s experience leading a Republican House and how he dealt with health care while balancing the budget and attempting to reform entitlements. Speaker Gingrich’s outlines his vision for the future of American health care. How hospitals can prioritize preventative care and aging. ...
Feb 01, 2023•32 min•Ep. 71
In this episode: What is Medicare Advantage (MA)? We examine the roots of this supplementary private health insurance coverage for seniors and its explosive growth, which now includes almost half of all Medicare beneficiaries (more than 28 million people). There are increasing cases of abuse by insurance companies in charge of MA plans. Reports show they are denying and delaying doctor’s requests for necessary – and in some cases lifesaving - care. We discuss how this harms patients and burdens ...
Dec 21, 2022•33 min•Ep. 70
In this episode: We’ll discuss the major stresses and challenges facing rural hospitals, including geography, patient mix, a growing workforce crisis, and funding shortfalls. Since 2010, 140 rural hospitals have closed, including 25 since the start of the pandemic. Congressional support helped keep that number from being even higher, but what happens now as COVID-19 relief runs out? What’s the impact on a small, rural community when a hospital closes? Congress needs to take actions to preserve f...
Nov 10, 2022•28 min•Ep. 69
In this episode: The Joint Commission’s role in working to reduce the health care workforce shortage. How TJC is addressing health equity moving forward. How hospital measurement is used to assure patients that their hospitals are safe and providing quality care. Guest: Dr. Jonathan Perlin, M.D., Ph.D., M.S.H.A., M.A.C.P., F.A.C.M.I., President and CEO, The Joint Commission The Joint Commission is celebrating its 70th anniversary this year; at the helm is Dr. Jon Perlin, previously of HCA Health...
Aug 15, 2022•33 min•Ep. 68
In this episode: How the Sarah Cannon Cancer Center’s integrated care model allows for high quality patient care close to home. The research being done at Sarah Cannon, including finding the potential cure for sickle cell disease. Hospitals are safe and patients should not put off cancer screenings – they save lives. Guest: Dr. Dax Kurbegov, Vice President and Physician-in-Chief of Clinical Programs of the Sarah Cannon Cancer Center The Sarah Cannon Cancer Center offers patients the unique oppor...
Jul 20, 2022•25 min•Ep. 67
The overturning of Roe V Wade has far reaching implications for hospitals and health care providers. Hospitals have a duty to care for every patient that walks through their emergency room, however that care may create a gray area that conflicts with new state laws on abortion. Hospitals are in every community across the country and will continue to care for women with very real and dangerous conditions in need of care. Tom Barker is a partner at Foley Hoag and focuses his practice on complex fe...
Jul 07, 2022•29 min•Ep. 66
Our country is facing a doctor shortage of nearly 124,000 physicians in just 2 years and the impact on patient access could be devastating. The problem is especially acute in economically disadvantaged areas, like California’s Inland Empire which is comprised of San Bernadino and Riverside Counties east of Los Angeles. The Inland Empire is also now the home of the California University of Science and Medicine, a unique institution built on a public private partnership. CUSM was created to promot...
Jun 22, 2022•28 min•Ep. 65
Hospitals have learned a lot about treating COVID-19 since the world first learned of the novel disease at the end of 2019. Integrated hospital systems worked together to share knowledge and best practices to treat this disease at unprecedented speeds and the advancements continue to come. Out of these advancements is a new normal for our hospitals. Chip spoke with Dr. Michael Cuffe and Prof. Martin McKee about what hospitals are experiencing now and how governments in both the UK and US can sup...
Jun 06, 2022•26 min•Ep. 64
Rachel Watson is a survivor. Last year Rachel and her husband David fell ill with COVID-19. Though David recovered without intervention, Rachel needed extreme measures. When HCA Florida West Marion Hospital received Rachel she was immediately placed on oxygen, but it wasn’t enough. She was transferred to another HCA Florida facility, HCA Florida North Florida and placed on an ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) machine where she remained for 89 days. The family credits hospital integratio...
May 24, 2022•17 min•Ep. 63
Courtney Clarke is a nurse at Lake Cumberland Regional Hospital in Somerset Kentucky and her efforts to help a patient and protect her kids during treatment made such an impact that she was recognized by the state’s governor. The Federation’s new campaign is embarking on a mission to tell The Real Story of hospitals through the eyes of patients and caregivers. Courtney’s story is our first. Learn more about The Real Story at fah.org/TheRealStory ....
May 06, 2022•17 min•Ep. 62
Dr. Ana Pineda has grown her health care career within HCA Healthcare. In fact, the doctors she works alongside today are the very ones that inspired her to take the first steps towards becoming an Emergency Medicine Physician. Dr. Pineda shared with Chip how her career has taken shape over the years, how COVID has affected her role, and her work in training the next generation of physicians at HCA Healthcare. Dr. Ana Pineda is the Associate Medical Director of Emergency Rooms at HCA Florida Ken...
Apr 21, 2022•10 min•Ep. 61
Jennifer Brady is a nurse at LifePoint Health’s Havasu Regional Medical Center in Arizona. A recent recipient of a DAISY Award, she exemplifies every quality you’d want in your nurse. Jennifer was inspired by her children to become a nurse later in life. She joined Chip on Making the Rounds to discuss her journey to nursing and her inspiration in providing high quality care to her patients. Interested in hearing more from caregivers? Fiona Chew is a nurse on the frontlines of COVID-19 who travel...
Apr 06, 2022•4 min•Ep. 60
The pandemic poured gasoline on the health care workforce shortage. Between nurse burnout, lower immigration numbers for trained caregivers, and a growing negative narrative surrounding health care careers, it’s no wonder we are facing a shortage sooner than we imagined. Lisa Dolan, Chief Nursing Officer at Ardent Health Services joined Chip to examine how it is using its size and scale to meet this challenge and continue to provide quality, compassionate care to all those who need it. Want to l...
Mar 23, 2022•16 min•Ep. 59
One of the biggest challenges facing hospitals during the pandemic is workforce shortages – specifically beside nurses. This crisis started before COVID-19 and will continue after – fueled by a myriad of developing issues. One constant is that we face an increasing need & a decreasing supply of the hospital nurses who are critical to providing the lifesaving care that patients need every day. Dr. Peter Buerhaus joins Chip to discuss the cyclical nature of these shortages, how COVID has made ...
Feb 09, 2022•38 min•Ep. 58
In many ways 2022 is starting off just like 2021 with COVID-19 dominating our lives and health care policy taking centerstage in front of a gridlocked Congress. And just like last year, Chris Jennings and Doug Badger return to Hospitals In Focus to prognosticate on the upcoming year in health policy. Coming from each side of the political spectrum, the two long-time health policy wonks discuss with Chip how the Biden administration has handled the COVID crisis. - What did they get right and wher...
Jan 26, 2022•52 min•Ep. 57
In this special edition of Hospitals in Focus, we are sharing a fireside chat Chip recently had with retiring Senator Roy Blunt (R-MO). It was recorded last month at the Federation’s Board of Governors meeting. This is a wide-ranging, informative discussion where Chip and Sen. Blunt talk about everything from Medicaid expansion to the growing partisan divide in Washington, DC. After serving more than 25 years in Congress and nearly 50 years in public service, Senator Blunt has a unique perspecti...
Nov 29, 2021•39 min•Ep. 56
Despite being pushed to the brink during the COVID-19 pandemic, rural hospitals answered the call – fighting adversity to save millions of lives. It was just another example of the important role these facilities play in the communities they serve. During this episode Chip talks to a veteran of rural hospitals – Doug Weaver, CEO of Hillcrest Hospital Pryor in Oklahoma, which is part of FAH member Ardent Health Services. He discusses the unique challenges his facility, and others like it, faced a...
Nov 17, 2021•18 min•Ep. 55
Jessica Smith, a respiratory therapist from outside Pulaski, Tennessee, is well known in her small community for her extraordinary dedication and compassion to her patients and family. In this episode, Jessica explains to Chip that like many frontline caregivers she has begun to experience “hero fatigue,” but adds that she still loves her job and does her best to focus on the positive. Her inspiration home life, along with her work ethic led to her winning LifePoint Health’s Mercy Award this yea...
Nov 03, 2021•14 min•Ep. 54
Every year, FAH joins mental health organizations and other proponents across the U.S. and around the world to raise awareness of suicide prevention during September, National Suicide Prevention Month. As society continues to struggle with COVID-19, there has been much discussion of the adverse psychological impacts of social distancing isolation and being away from loved ones. In this episode, Chip is joined by Karen Johnson of Universal Health Services and they discuss a wide range of topics f...
Sep 22, 2021•19 min•Ep. 53
As the pandemic persists, and the increasing caseload caused by the Delta variant continues to force hospitals to adapt to new challenges, we turn to learning hospital and health systems to understand how they are uniquely positioned to treat patients during the COVID crisis. Chip and his guest Marty Bonick, President & CEO of Ardent Health Services, discuss what hospitals are seeing on the ground during this latest surge. They also spoke about the efforts of integrated health systems, like ...
Sep 07, 2021•15 min•Ep. 52
Hospitals are not just the four walls of a building; they are also the backbone in an American community. As the pandemic continues across the country, Chip and Jeff Goldsmith examine how hospitals learned to treat a disease without a proven cure or readily available therapies. They also spoke about what characteristics were displayed by hospitals that demonstrated successes during the past 18 months of this COVID-19 crisis. Jeff is the President of Health Futures, Inc. The two discuss the benef...
Aug 11, 2021•17 min•Ep. 51
