September 8, 2025

Whitepaper: Point Solutions are Piling Up: How MUSC Health and Others are Breaking Free

Healthcare leaders are under immense pressure to drive efficiency, improve access and reduce costs – yet many are relying on patchwork technology that can’t keep up. Point solutions may solve one problem, but they often create three more.

Systems like MUSC Health, Montage Health and NKC Health are taking a different approach: They’re adopting AI-powered platforms that streamline operations across departments, reduce costs and deliver measurable outcomes.

This report breaks down the difference between quick-fix tools and enterprise-grade platforms, offering leaders a practical framework to guide smarter AI investments.

Inside the whitepaper:

• How MUSC Health avoided 14,500 no-shows annually,
• How Montage Health increased patient engagement by 200%,
• How NKC Health achieved automation equivalent 80 FTEs, and
• The 5-step roadmap to transition from fragmented point solutions to a scalable AI platform.

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September 5, 2025

Article: Why This System is Investing in a ‘Loss-leading’ Service Many Hospitals are Abandoning

Since joining North Kansas City, MO – based NKC Health in 2021, Senior Vice President and CFO Austin Jones has steered the organization through a 40% growth in net patient service revenue and he’s not afraid to invest in areas many hospitals are abandoning.

One of those investments is labor and delivery care, a loss-leading service for many hospitals, particularly in rural areas, where nearly 40% report losses on obstetrics programs. But at NKC Health, the decision to maintain and strengthen these offerings reflects a broader, community-first mission, and one Mr. Jones says is already yielding returns.

That commitment aligns with a broader transformation: North Kansas City Hospital and Meritas Health recently united under the NKC Health brand to improve care coordination, enhance the patient experience and strengthen the system’s regional presence. NKC Health comprises the 451-bed North Kansas City Hospital, 35 care facilities and a workforce of more than 4,700 – including 600 physicians.

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September 5, 2025

Whitepaper: 10 Inpatient Coding Strategies Recapturing $2M+ for Hospitals

Hospitals are losing up to millions annually from missed coding opportunities – and most leaders don’t even realize it.

Vague documentation, siloed teams and under-resourced coders quietly erode margins, delay reimbursement and trigger denials.

Download the 10 strategies hospitals are using now to protect revenue, without overhauling their EHRs or adding staff.

What You’ll Learn:

• How hospitals are boosting average case revenue by up to $2,500
• The case for aligning coders to high-dollar service lines, and
• When to use AI vs. automation, and how to make both work

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September 5, 2025

Beyond Ambient: 5 Must-Reads on the Next Wave of Clinical AI

From ambient listening to active assistance, clinical AI is rapidly reshaping care delivery. But documentation burden, burnout and retention challenges persist.

Now, a more active wave of AI tools is emerging – ones that assist with drafting, answering clinical questions and supporting tasks in real time. These agentic tools are changing how CIOs, CMIOs and CEOs think about care delivery.

Don’t miss these 5 must-reads on what’s working, what’s not and where leading systems are headed next.

Download to explore:

• How Rush University System for Health reduced clinician burnout by 74% and increased patient access through ambient AI adoption,
• What health systems like Yale New Haven and Intermountain Health are prioritizing when scaling AI: security, data readiness, and centralized funding, and
• Where clinical AI is headed next – from real-time documentation and predictive insights to fully integrated support across EHR workflows.

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September 3, 2025

Whitepaper: 3 Ways to Improve Cybersecurity Amid Healthcare’s Cyber Crisis

Recently, a wave of cyberattacks forced healthcare executives to reckon with an uncomfortable truth: traditional cybersecurity strategies are no longer enough.

This report from Advisory Board shares how more than 10 experts – from provider organizations and digital health firms to consulting leaders – are redefining what cyber resilience means in an era of third-party interdependence.

It outlines a strategic shift from reactive defense to collaborative, systemwide resilience – and the practical steps leaders are taking to manage operational risk, strengthen contracts and reduce exposure across complex networks.

Download the report to learn:

• Ways that health systems are reassessing third-party vendor contracts and performance metrics,
• Tactics to improve communication with partners and regulators to contain risk, and
• Examples of resilience-driven models that ensure continuity during cyber incidents.

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September 3, 2025

Whitepaper: Patient Access Moves Center Stage: 6 Systems Rethinking Their Approach

Patient access is under pressure as care costs climb, appointment wait times grow and staffing shortages persist. Nearly one-third of Americans live more than an hour from hospitals offering high-quality surgical services, with many facing out-of-pocket expenses they can’t afford.

While operational fixes are critical, viewing access through a strategic lens unlocks new opportunities for growth, capacity management and patient trust – a mindset shared by leaders from Mount Sinai Health System, Duke University Hospital, WVU Medicine and others who joined a Becker’s Healthcare advisory call.

This report compiles their insights on what it takes to move beyond traditional access models to improve care quality and operational performance.

Inside You’ll Find:

• How hospitals are freeing inpatient capacity by shifting care to ambulatory care sites,
• The role of patient navigation teams and technology in expanding rural access, and
• Why basic KPIs like patient volumes don’t fully capture access performance.

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September 3, 2025

Whitepaper: Setting Your Health System up for Cybersecurity Success in the Face of HIPAA Security Rule Changes

Changes to the HIPAA Security Rule are under review, yet the future of these updates is uncertain. What is clear is that healthcare cybersecurity requires a greater amount of standardization to combat the evolving threats and growing risk profile of the modern technology-dependent clinical environment.

With the right examination of the proposed Security Rule update, health systems can gain valuable insights to set their organizations on the right path for both continued compliance, stronger safeguards of patient data, and more efficient approaches to handling cybersecurity priorities.

Learning Points:

• The proposed HIPAA Security Rule changes would increase the demands on health systems to enact cybersecurity best practices with more required procedures, stronger security protocols, and stricter timelines for security testing and incident reporting.
• Medical device technology represents a significant, yet often underexamined, frontier of cybersecurity risk that can carry significant operational and safety consequences in the event of a breach.
• Health systems can leverage information from the proposed Security Rule update to develop a plan of action that improves their ability to comply with C

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August 27, 2025

The 340B Program, Explained

More than three decades ago, Congress created the 340B program to help safety-net hospitals and clinics expand resources and care for underserved communities.

By requiring pharmaceutical companies to offer deep discounts on outpatient drugs, the program has become a hallmark resource to help health systems support vulnerable patients. In recent years, however, the program has drawn scrutiny from federal lawmakers as several drug makers have introduced alternative rebate and drug pricing models, raising questions about the direction of the program.

Hospitals have also faced increased scrutiny in recent years over how they are utilizing 340B savings. This intensified after a Senate report published in April found some of the largest health systems were exploiting the system. According to the report, Cincinnati-based Bon Secours Mercy Health and Cleveland Clinic generated hundreds of millions of dollars by acquiring discounted drugs and then charged patients significantly higher prices. Both health systems defended their participation in the 340B program, telling Becker’s they operated the program in compliance with federal rules.

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August 27, 2025

Urban Hospitals Increasingly Poaching Rural Funds

A regulatory loophole has allowed hundreds of large, urban hospitals to claim rural benefits, raining alarms from lawmakers and experts who warn that taxpayer dollars are being diverted from the very communities Congress intended to protect.

In 2016, CMS revised its regulations in response to two federal court decisions: Geisinger Community Medical Center v. Secretary and Lawrence and Memorial Hospital v. Burwell. The rule change effectively permitted hospitals to use a two-step reclassification process to be designated as both urban and rural for Medicare purposes, a practice CMS had previously prohibited.

The impact was immediate.

According to a study published in Health Affairs in August, the number of urban hospitals claiming rural status jumped from just three in 2017 to 425 in 2023. The number o hospital beds in dual-classified facilities skyrocketed from fewer than 400 in 2017 to more than 162,000 in 2023, representing 61% of all beds in administratively rural hospitals nationwide.

More than 75% were nonprofit organizations, and all of the top 20 highest-revenue facilities with dual status were teaching hospitals, with net patient revenues ranging from $2.9 billion to more than $9 billion. New York City-based New York Presbyterian Hospital, with 2,850 beds and nearly $9.3 billion in patient revenue, topped the list.

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