University of Alabama at Birmingham Health System Achieves Cumulative Revenue Improvement of $125 Million
Challenge
In 2014, the University of Alabama at Birmingham Health System (UABHS) was facing what many academic medical centers were anticipating — a potential reduction to clinical, educational, and research revenue at unprecedented levels. Challenges to Medicare payment reductions, value-based purchasing, increasing governmental and regulatory burdens, constraints to state funding, diminished philanthropy, and reduced indirect medical education payments were just a few of the looming concerns for administrators.
UABHS worked with an independent firm to forecast five years of revenue and operating costs, including projected increases for strategic/capital investments and increases to wages/benefits, while maintaining appropriate cash reserves. The prediction was a cumulative $600 million improvement to fund identified strategic requirements.
The health system partnered with Guidehouse on an enterprisewide initiative to help with the projected revenue and cash flow gap. The two-year project was called “Foundation for the Future.”
Over the course of 24 months, Guidehouse’s team concentrated on:
Impact
“Guidehouse’s team partnered effortlessly with our clinical leadership, executive leadership, and departmental leaders. This synergy was the key to identifying areas of opportunity and ensuring implementation was successful.
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Reid Jones
Chief Operating Officer
UAB Health System