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The COVID-19 pandemic is straining hospital and governmental resources. It is also serving as a catalyst for a major evolution of our nation’s healthcare delivery system, the likes of which we have never before seen. With this confluence of factors, local governments and the hospitals they support are presented with a unique chance to evaluate the sustainability of their relationship.

For some government health systems, this may mean exploring opportunities to grow their footprint, often by supporting less-resourced 501(c)3 hospitals within or adjacent to the municipality they serve. For others, it means assessing the long-term durability of their governmental status and, in some cases, considering a conversion to an independent, non-profit entity.

Understanding the impact of government sponsorship on the hospital’s ability to meet its objectives is critical.  Our latest article highlights several key issues hospital leaders and elected officials should take into consideration when evaluating governmental sponsorship and common advantages and drawbacks to each.

Read more. 

Public hospitals have a uniquely open relationship to the communities they serve, which invites a level of transparency as they consider potential mergers and acquisitions. So what kind of M&A deal activity options are out there for public hospitals dealing with financial pressures, and how can parties navigate regulatory, financial and public opinion to get the deal done?

In this two-part Collaborative Transformation podcast series, Rex Burgdorfer, Partner, Juniper Advisory joins Megan Rooney, Partner, McDermott Will & Emery, to discuss important considerations related to government-sponsored hospital partnerships.

Part I 

• The major trends driving public hospital M&A
• How M&A can strengthen hospitals financially and the regulatory and external challenges contributing to financial pressures
• Unique regulatory and financial challenges faced by public hospitals
• Benefits of privatization in the hospital industry
• The role public sentiment can play in public hospital transactions

Click here to listen to the podcast. 

Part II 

• Key issues that hospital boards, senior leaders and partners must address to secure transaction approval
• Strategies for identifying and educating stakeholders about the proposed transaction, including competitive benefits and tax and political implications
• Choosing a deal structure that will work for all
  

Overview

System hospitals tend to have more ICU beds, higher case mix indices and are more likely to be a part of physician integration networks compared to like-sized standalone hospitals. These attributes are particularly important findings during the COVID-19 pandemic, where ICU beds are at a premium; experience managing complex cases is essential; and the ability to care for patients in appropriate settings is of utmost importance.

We reached these conclusions by analyzing CMS Medicare Cost Report data, the most comprehensive set of financial and clinical data available for comparisons of U.S. hospitals. We used this data set to create regression models which can be found here. These regressions allow us to assess the impact of independence on ICU beds, CMI and ACO/CIN membership. We performed this analysis on a subset of all hospitals, namely those with 80 or fewer ICU beds. Intuitively, facilities with more than 80 ICU beds tend to be ‘hub’ facilities and there are almost no independent hospitals with greater than 80 ICU beds. Further, by excluding these ‘hub’ facilities, we review a data set where both system and standalone hospitals are well distributed and lower the

The COVID-19 pandemic has upended our nation and our healthcare delivery system. The extreme pressure being put on hospitals during this crisis will permanently change the way healthcare is sought and provided. In addition to the sweeping changes we can expect in clinical standards and care delivery models, we will also see changes in how hospitals approach partnerships. Following are seven observations on the impact the pandemic will have on the healthcare merger and acquisition market:

• We are entering a buyers’ market. Hospitals and health systems are experiencing financial strain during the pandemic. The loss of revenue from non-urgent procedures along with the increase in supply and workforce costs is dramatic. The burden is being felt most acutely by hospitals that were near or in financial distress pre-pandemic. Stressed hospitals are already seeking infusions of cash and other support to keep their doors open. In the aggregate, there will be more sellers than buyers in the market post-pandemic. As a result, sellers will need to be more flexible as the composition of transaction consideration will change. Hospitals that seek relationships with academic medical centers should also be aware of the anticipated