Improve the Trauma Center Bottom Line
Trauma centers present unique financial challenges for hospitals. Our engagements regularly produce $1 million in real opportunities for bottom line improvement. Therefore, we are highly confident in our ability to optimize financial performance. We tailor our engagements to the unique characteristics of each region, hospital and medical staff, and apply our broad experience to assure that results are achieved.
The trauma program’s financial performance demonstrates the typical challenges found in trauma care finance. These include fixed reimbursement from Medicare and Medicaid, high volumes of uninsured patients, increasing managed care cost pressures, and rising costs of medical staff support. These factors result, on average, in overall program losses of 7%. In working with over 100 clients across the nation, we have found the typical Trauma Center can improve its bottom line by following key financial strategies.
- Have you taken full advantage of implementing trauma service charges (UB-04 revenue codes) to offset the high costs of Trauma Center operations?
- Have you established managed care carve-outs for contracts that include trauma patients in order to achieve 150-200% cost recovery rates on these patients?
- How does your trauma center’s acuity adjusted costs compare on a cost per stay, or cost per day basis with other trauma centers in your region and across the nation?
- How is your trauma center’s performance by payer class versus national norms?
All Trauma Center costs must be covered by revenue on an ongoing basis in order to maintain this unique and important community service. Such costs include Trauma Center administration, stand-by resources (e.g. 24/7 OR), uncompensated care, and supplemental support for physicians necessary to maintain their participation in trauma care. The cost for this engagement will readily pay for itself and help assure the sustainability of the Trauma Center for a decade. |
