The HFMA annual conference: 5 things to watch

At a time when there are tectonic shifts in the healthcare industry, the Healthcare Financial Management Association’s annual conference plans to help leaders make sense of what’s happening and position themselves for success.

About 3,500 healthcare leaders are slated to attend the HFMA’s annual conference in National Harbor, Md., just outside Washington, D.C. The conference kicks off Sunday, and runs through Wednesday.

Here’s a quick overview of what we expect to be five themes worth watching over the course of the conference.

• Read more: HFMA annual conference looks to the future

The costs of care

Affordability is an enormous topic in the healthcare industry. It’s gaining attention from Congress, with lawmakers in Congress pressing hospitals to do better on prices. Millions of Americans are struggling to pay medical bills, and many are delaying care because they can’t afford it.

So expect plenty of conversation about affordability at the HFMA conference.

Ann Jordan, the HFMA’s president and CEO, is going to be talking about affordability in her keynote address, and she’ll also be leading a session of healthcare leaders talking about the cost of care.

Financial sustainability

Plenty of health systems and hospitals are struggling, and some are seeing only modest operating margins, and many healthcare analysts are expecting financial pressures to mount.

In an interview with Chief Healthcare Executive® at the ViVE digital health conference in February, Ann Jordan said the healthcare industry is facing an “existential tipping point” within three to five years.

So expect plenty of discussions about the growing headwinds for healthcare organizations and the need to move toward a sustainable path.

AI

Artificial intelligence is hardly going to be an afterthought at the HFMA conference. In fact, it’s going to be a key running theme throughout the conference. There’s a track on AI and innovation at the event.

But Stephanie Denvir, HFMA’s chief member value officer, says AI is interwoven throughout much of the conference’s agenda, and is showing up in discussions ranging from revenue cycle management to the workforce. And more healthcare organizations are adopting AI.

“When they're looking at AI, it's not when … it's how to best optimize, and do they have the right tools,” Denvir says.

Federal policy

Health systems and hospitals are preparing to deal with Medicaid cuts in the coming years, following the passage of the HR 1 federal tax policy package next year.

Medicaid spending is slated to be reduced by $1 trillion over the next 10 years, and millions of Americans are expected to lose coverage. Analysts say hospitals are at risk of reducing services or closing facilities altogether due to reductions in Medicaid funding.

Dr. Mehmet Oz, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, is slated to appear at the event. He’s scheduled to speak Tuesday, so that will certainly be of interest.

We’ll be expecting plenty of talk about federal spending on healthcare in general. Many analysts agree that there aren’t likely to be big increases in federal money for healthcare in the foreseeable future, so health systems will likely need to plan with that in mind.

The workforce

Now more than ever, hospitals and health systems face the challenge of finding and keeping top doctors, nurses, managers, and certainly financial leaders.

Industry analysts and leaders stress that retention is more important than ever to ensure to help maintain patient care and to manage costs, since replacing staff tends to be an expensive proposition.

Health systems are increasingly adopting AI tools to streamline administrative tasks and handle documentation chores to ease the burdens on their workforce, and hopefully improve their prospects of holding onto top talent.

It’ll be worth watching to see what healthcare leaders are saying they plan to do to manage and support their workforce in the face of financial challenges.

Chief Healthcare Executive is reporting from the HFMA annual conference in National Harbor, Md. Look for our coverage.