The Diamond State Hospital Cost Review Board signed off on its regulations for reviewing Delaware hospital budgets.
Now that the board’s rules for reviewing Delaware hospital spending arefinalized,they’llbe posted and subject to public comment.Sothere’s still a couple of months before they take effect.
Eventually, it will be able to put hospitals on performance improvement plans. But initial reports will be about collecting data.
“Our focus is on the growth in costs from one year to the next,” Diamond State Hospital Cost Review Board chair David Singleton said. “So it wouldn't be so much on what do people get paid at the hospitals, but how much that's gone up from one year to the next, and that's something that we would be we would be looking at.”
One example is analyzing how hospital costs on labor are spread and how staffing shortages get handled. For instance, if hospitals hire from temp services to fill staffing shortages, the board would be able to make suggestions.
During last week’s meeting, Delaware Healthcare Association president Brian Frazee, a non-voting member of the board,questioned requirements,focusing on an ask that hospitals to share insurance specific payment data.
He arguedt hat could include confidential information hospitals aren’t legally allowed to disclose. The cost review board agreed that aggregate insurance information would suffice to analyze possible cost increases.
Frazee said the process over the last six months has been collaborative.
“The board did work with us on a process where hospitals canrequestthat certain aspects of information canbe kept confidential outside of the cost review board,” Frazee said.
Frazee added the board has more work to do on benchmark compliance plans for hospitals that repeatedly miss goals to limit spending growth, and to oversee hospital implementation of meaningful cost containment arrangements under legislation passed this year.
In September, the board will set standards for charity care that nonprofit hospitals must provide for patients.
