BY Stacy Nahas, Audit Chief Client Care Officer, KPMG   In today’s business world there’s no shortage of volatility as inflation and supply chain disruptions brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic have impacted economies everywhere. For senior financial reporting executives — Corporate Controllers and Chief Accounting Officers in particular — there are a number of challenging issues that remain top of mind as they look to stay competitive in their industries.   ESG This topic...

By Catherine Lightfoot, CPA, CHBC, Director of Healthcare at EEPB In 2022, the world emerged out of the COVID-19 pandemic with the highest inflation rates we have seen in years. Additionally, political uncertainty stalled any significant tax changes. In this economically daunting period of time, there are still tax planning strategies worth considering before year-end. I recommend you take a look at what tax-lowering options may work for you. Harvesting Capital Losses Review your investments...

By Catherine Lightfoot, CPA, CHBC, Director of Healthcare at EEPB Overview The 21st– Century Cures Act was originally signed into law way back in December 2016.  Now we face some very important updates in 2022.  The following summary includes the main information and changes that are worth noting: The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) has been made responsible for defining the policies related to information blocking and establishing a complaint...

By Chris Kachinsky, National Life Sciences Tax Industry Leader, and Mark Shelton, National Exempt Healthcare Leader, KPMG Scientific advances. The global pandemic. Tightening supply chains. The increasing adoption of digital technologies. These and other forces have spurred the rapid evolution of the life sciences industry in the past few years. In our positions as KPMG National Life Sciences Tax Industry Leader and KPMG National Exempt Healthcare Leader, we are constantly scrutinizing the intersection of industry...

BY Katie Dahler, National Life Sciences Leader, KPMG   As demand for pharmaceutical cost containment intensifies, novel drug-pricing approaches are critical.   First, an unprecedented number of blockbuster drugs came off patent over the last decade, and manufacturers were not able to pump out new drug innovations fast enough to replace them. The result was that sales and profit growth for most major pharmaceutical companies fell from double digits to low single digits. Although many...

BY Catherine Lightfoot, CPA, CHBC, Director of Healthcare, EEPB Why it might be worth owning rather than leasing in this economic climate Delivering care is the primary and extremely demanding business of any healthcare provider.  So, why would you even consider owning your own real estate? Isn’t it just easier to lease? Well, like any debate, there are pros and cons to either side of the argument. This article attempts to answer the question of...

BY Eric Gorman, Principal, U.S. Lead, and Philip Glock, Partner – Co-Leader, Legal Operations Transformation Services (LOTS), KPMG When mass legal procedures emerge — whether due to a product defect, service disruption, or other liability — in-house legal teams can find themselves at the center of one of the most high-risk, high-stakes, and complex situations that can threaten a corporation. Not only does the legal team have to quickly understand and manage the legal issues,...

By Catherine Lightfoot, Director of Healthcare, EEPB   When a physician embarks upon succession planning with regard to his or her practice, it should also include careful consideration of buy/sell (a.k.a. buy-in/buy-out) agreements. What to include. What to watch out for. When and how to execute. Both scenarios require professional assistance (legal and/or accounting) to ensure proper and thorough planning in the present, with provisions to modify in the future as things change…and they always...

BY Mary Van Beusekom, MS, CIDRAP Recent studies describe how the COVID-19 pandemic cratered the finances of many US hospitals, one finding that most federal relief funds went to the already best-resourced facilities and the other two showing the devastating monetary effects of delaying or canceling surgeries. Wide disparities in fund allocation RAND Corp. researchers traced High-Impact Distribution Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act funding to 952 hospitals. Data, which were taken from...

By Catherine Lightfoot, CPA, CHBC, Director of Healthcare at EEPB In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, innovative Telehealth strategies took off by necessity, as patients felt more comfortable visiting with their primary care physician from the safety of their own homes. The remote delivery of medical services continues to be an opportunity to build revenue and retain those patients who still opt for Telemedicine as a preferred mode. According to a study by...