Budget Changes in the Age of Health Reform

Chuck Green writes in Healthcare Finance News about “Reform creating budgeting changes” for hospitals.  He cites the long list of reform measures hospitals are now required to adhere to, and the resulting shift away from ledger budgeting towards patient-centric predictive budgeting.
Green is on-target with his description of hospitals’ need to focus less on volume and more on value, which reflects a new surge in population health management. He also acutely describes the unpredictability of reform outcomes, leaving CFOs at a loss for advanced budget planning, which is much more favorable than ‘crisis mode’ budgeting.
What Green leaves out, however, is the cadre of ways CFOs can re-align budgets and financial costs that do not depend on health reform outcomes. Every hospital has crucial pricing opportunities that hold promise for reducing overall costs. While patient care and experience is the focus of every hospital, every CFO should also be aware of how strategic equipment and supply monitoring can assist in lowering the hospital’s overall costs.
VIE Healthcare has developed a number of solutions that are tailored to fit individual hospital needs.  VIE uses a data-driven, analytical approach to not just slash costs, but to do so in an intelligent, thoughtful way. With VIE’s assistance, many hospitals may find their budgets healthier than they expected.