FastFinance with Rich Daly

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. A proposed rule to implement provider tax provisions of the 2025 Medicaid overhaul would be far more strictive than that law required, according to hospital advocates. Also, this week’s Weird Number: $1 billion. That was how much Medicare...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Physician union activity is picking up this year, including at an unexpected health system. What's driving it? Also, this week’s Weird Number: $2.5 million. That’s the average annual cost per hospital of denied claims stemming from inaccu...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. A seven-state health system has garnered federal rural funding under the 2025 federal healthcare overhaul, even as it prepares for adverse impacts next year. Also, this week’s Weird Number: $1.8 trillion. That’s the amount that Medicare a...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Hospital and health system capital expenditures in fiscal 2025 reached their highest since the start of the financial crisis in 2008, according to Fitch Ratings Also, this week’s Weird Number: $137 billion. That’s the estimated annual spe...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. A recent legal ruling underscored that federal officials have the right to approve 340B rebates, which could increase the likelihood of a federal pilot. Also, this week’s Weird Number: $10 million. That’s the maximum annual penalty for he...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. AI resistance by nurses is spreading nationwide but there are ways hospitals can use it to boost their productivity while minimizing opposition. Also, this week’s Weird Number: 66%. That’s the share of respondents to HFMA’s “Hospital of t...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. An AI tool helped cut emergency department lengths of stay, a recent study found. That improvement demonstrates the technology’s potential to drive operational efficiency, says one of its authors. Also, this week’s Weird Number: 11%. That...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Hospitals and health systems have launched an increasing number of health plans in recent years and now they need major re-assessments amid pressure facing all payers. Also, this week’s Weird Number: 2.3 million. That’s the number of Medi...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Hospitals and health systems have improved their front-end patient collections over the last year. But back-end collections are faltering. Also, this week’s Weird Number: $1.3 billion. That’s the amount of Medicaid funding CMS announced i...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Hospitals and health systems may have some opportunities ahead to improve their results in Medicare Advantage. Also, this week’s Weird Number: $3.8 billion. That's the total drop in Clinical Laboratory Fee Schedule Medicare payments from...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Hospitals and health systems are facing Medicaid administrative burdens as states scramble to upgrade their programs ahead of OBBBA. Also, this week’s Weird Number: 49.5%. That’s the combined percentage of top automation concerns among re...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Hospitals and health systems are dialing back their capex in 2026 and changing where those dollars flow. Learn the details and what they mean. Also, this week’s Weird Number: 34.9% is the share of rural hospitals that operated in the red...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Most hospital revenue is from non-patient-care sources, according to a new analysis. The shares of patient-care revenue vary widely by hospital type. Also, this week’s Weird Number: 40%. That’s the increase in bad debt and charity per cal...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Health systems will spend a record amount this year building new hospitals, with hospital and clinic construction budgets far outpacing outpatient facilities, like ASCs. Also, this week’s Weird Number: 39%. That's the projected growth in...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Health systems face a growing physician unionization push this year, amid heightened overall strike activity. Also, this week’s Weird Number: 20. That's the number of states that have enacted mandatory minimum income limits for free or di...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Health systems face multiple potential financial hits from new off-campus HOPD reporting requirements. Also, this week’s Weird Number: 3%-5%. That the amount of net revenue lost annually by electronic health records and billing systems. O...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Health systems are expected to ramp up their dealmaking activity next year but deep divides have emerged between for-profit and not-for-profit approaches. Also, this week’s Weird Number: $172 billion. That the amount of projected federal...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Union activity is expected to accelerate at hospitals in 2026. But financial pressures are leading some organizations to push back. Also, this week’s Weird Number: 24%. That’s the share of providers who did not receive the Independent Dis...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. A list of alleged financial harms against hospitals are at the heart of Texas' anticompetitive lawsuit again EHR vendor Epic. Learn why its details are required reading. Also, this week’s Weird Number: 40%. That’s how much higher the year...

HFMA's FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. As states are increasingly requiring pre-screening patients for charity care, a recent industry outreach effort gauged hospital interest and approaches. Also, this week’s Weird Number: 500,000. That’s how many people quit their jobs in he...

HFMA’s FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Former hospital executives detail an approach that helped their organization improve quality while obtaining average commercial rates of 150% of Medicare. Also, this week’s Weird Number: $10 billion. The amount Medicare was expected to sp...

HFMA’s FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Employers have a new data source that combines price, quality and safety data and was expected to fuel a renewed push on direct contracting. Also, this week’s Weird Number: 30%. Fewer than 30% of health systems earned significant ROI from...

HFMA’s FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Health systems nationwide are pushing to increase efficiency ahead of federal funding cuts from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. One health system is pretending the cuts have already begun in order to give urgency to its efforts. Also, thi...

HFMA’s FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Congress is pressing CMS to release long-delayed rules that would implement requirements that providers create good faith estimates for their patients. Also, this week’s Weird Number: As of July, 96.5% of independent dispute resolution di...

HFMA’s FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. An employer group identifies where businesses have pushed--and attained--the greatest healthcare savings from plans and providers. Also, this week’s Weird Number: $1.7 billion is available for hospitals from the Blue Cross and Blue Shield...