The Washington State Health Care Authority (HCA) is moving forward with its plans to transform the health care system. The agency recently issued a grant opportunity to establish ten communities of health in the state. Now is the time for hospital leaders to make sure they are appropriately represented in the governance structures of these newly created organizations. ... Read More >>

The purpose of this bulletin is to inform you about a potential opportunity for hospitals, working with foundations, to help low-income patients pay the premiums for their Exchange-purchased health plan. It is also intended to give you guidance from the American Hospital Association regarding the legality of sponsoring premiums. ... Read More >>

The purpose of this bulletin is to notify you that the Washington Health Benefit Exchange (Exchange) will be offering training for Certified Application Counselors (CACs) from October 1, 2014 through November 30, 2014. The Exchange is hosting a webinar on October 1, 2014 to review the CAC training curriculum and answer any questions you may have regarding the training and certification requirements for the 2014-2015 open enrollment period.... Read More >>

The purpose of this bulletin is to prepare you for the launch of the Washington State Hospital Association’s quality transparency website on October 15. As a strategic initiative supported by the board, WSHA is breathing new life into the wahospitalquality.org website with a major redesign.... Read More >>

The purpose of this bulletin is to: Inform hospitals about the Department of Social and Health Services’ (DSHS) new emergency rule and form for Single Bed Certifications. These were issued in response to the recent Washington State Supreme Court decision regarding psychiatric boarding.... Read More >>

The purpose of this bulletin is to provide information about the Washington Health Alliance’s report on the Choosing Wisely initiative in Washington State. The report uses county-level claims data to show variation in the use of diagnostic testing and treatment across the state, but does not include the clinical information a physician might consider to make a about patient care. Variation between counties is considerable.... Read More >>

The purpose of this bulletin is to provide an overview of proposed 2015 Medicare outpatient final rule, which will affect Medicare outpatient payments to Washington State hospitals. This bulletin is also intended to alert members to their opportunity to obtain the detailed hospital-specific analysis done by the Washington State Hospital Association (WSHA) that is available through the secure file transfer mechanism, and to alert members to their opportunity to comment on the proposed rule.... Read More >>

To inform you about the Dr. Robert Bree Collaborative draft report on Lumbar Fusion Surgery Bundle and the companion report on Spinal Fusion Warranty. We encourage you to comment on the reports, after reading them along with the issues discussed in this bulletin.... Read More >>

During its 2012 session, the Legislature passed House Bill 2582, an act relating to billing practices for health care services. The goal of the legislation is to ensure patients are informed about the potential for additional charges and out of pocket costs for services at provider-based clinics. ... Read More >>

The Washington State Hospital Association (WSHA) has often heard from state legislators who want patients to have access to better information about health care costs. WSHA supports transparency, but has been concerned that responding to requests for information about charges may not help in educating patients.... Read More >>