My Good Friends

I have been working on a new concept for a few months. I'm so thankful to Kayla Howell, CRCR John Ziegler and the entire HFMA Central Ohio chapter for giving me the freedom to present it last week. This group has consistently been willing to dive into the unknown with some of my crazy ideas. For that I'm very appreciative. Special thanks to my guests who joined me on stage after my talk to discuss it: Girish Dighe David Kelly, MHSA

Jonathan Wiik, Healthcare industry Author and VP of FinThrive, predicts changes to American healthcare under the current administration as well as dives back into his past reminiscing his first hospital job. This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM. Please reach out to Nate and the team: Nate@switchrcm.com You will not regret it. Those cats are doing some very interesting things. Don't forget to like and subscribe!

Ben breaks down the "Johari Window" framework, a tool that helps people understand themselves and how others perceive them. Reach out with your rant ideas! Email " RevCycleRants@gmail.com " Subscribe for more Rev Cycle Content.

Ryan Patterson (Senior Director, Ambulatory Operations at Jefferson Health) and Sherry Onushco (Director at Lehigh Valley Health Network) discuss exciting changes they're making in their networks to streamline checking in, checking out and payment. This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM. Please reach out to Nate and the team: Nate@switchrcm.com You will not regret it. Those cats are doing some very interesting things. Don't forget to like and subscribe!

Ben rehashes a previous talk he gave titled "Clouds and Dirt" where he tells the story of British explorer Robert Falcon Scott and Norwegian explorer Roland Amundsen as they both aimed to be the first to reach the South Pole in 1911. Reach out with your rant ideas! Email " RevCycleRants@gmail.com " Subscribe for more Rev Cycle Content.

Mark Meyer (Chief Financial Officer Health System at UT Southwestern Medical Center) and Kelly Kloeckler (Associate Vice President Revenue Cycle Operations, UT Southwestern) Discuss the methods and tactics their team has found succes in at UT. This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM. Please reach out to Nate and the team: Nate@switchrcm.com You will not regret it. Those cats are doing some very interesting things. Don't forget to like and subscribe!

Ben has some HOT TAKES about Linkedin's promotional posts and norms this week, as well as a one year look back at United Healthcare's data breach. Email " RevCycleRants@gmail.com " with your rant ideas! Subscribe for more Rev Cycle Content.

Ben reflects on his first attempt at building a revenue cycle educational class and the short comings of it, then expresses his enthusiasm at his current iteration of the same dream. Please Email " RevCycleRants@gmail.com " with your rant ideas! Subscribe for more Rev Cycle Content.

Ben talks about a potential fee for appeals, and how that could effect the process of Rev Cycle. Please Email " RevCycleRants@gmail.com " with your rant ideas! Subscribe for more Rev Cycle Content.

My Good Friends Live from Indianapolis HFMA with Motti Edelstein (Vice President Chief Revenue Officer at Sutter Health) and David Kelly (Vice President Revenue Cycle & Ambulatory Operations) This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM. Please reach out to Nate and the team: Nate@switchrcm.com You will not regret it. Those cats are doing some very interesting things. Don't forget to like and subscribe!

Join Ben as he touches on his recent linkedin exchange with renowned businessman Mark Cuban and discuses potential fixes for insurance-patient relations. Please Email " RevCycleRants@gmail.com " with your rant ideas! Subscribe for more Rev Cycle Content.

We're starting a new off shoot of the My Good Friends podcast called "Revenue Cycle Rants" where Ben will take on a topic in a shorter form episode once a week to foster a greater conversation online. Please Email " RevCycleRants@gmail.com " with your rant ideas! Subscribe for more Rev Cycle Content.

We're starting a new off shoot of the My Good Friends podcast called "Revenue Cycle Rants" where Ben will take on a topic in a shorter form episode once a week to foster a greater conversation online. This week Ben starts us off with the topic of Patient Balances and The Rand Experiment. The RAND Health Insurance Experiment (HIE) was a landmark study conducted from 1971 to 1982 to assess how different levels of cost-sharing (e.g., free care vs. high deductibles) affect healthcare usage, costs, and patient outcomes. The study randomly assigned participants to various insurance plans with differing levels of cost-sharing. It found that higher out-of-pocket costs led to reduced healthcare usage but did not significantly affect overall health outcomes for most individuals. However, low-income and chronically ill patients experienced worse health outcomes when faced with higher cost-sharing. The study remains one of the most influential in health policy, shaping debates on insurance design and healthcare affordability. Please Email " RevCycleRants@gmail.com " with your rant ideas! Subscribe for more Rev Cycle Content.

Join Ben as he touches on his recent linkedin exchange with renowned businessman Mark Cuban and discuses potential fixes for insurance-patient relations. Please Email " RevCycleRants@gmail.com " with your rant ideas! Subscribe for more Rev Cycle Content.

Thank you all for a wonderful season, We'll be back soon with all our good friends. Here's to 2025. This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM.  Please reach out to Nate and the team: Nate@switchrcm.com  You will not regret it.  Those cats are doing some very interesting things.   Don't forget to like and subscribe!  

What's happening behind the tech war? The Brilliant Ramie Phillips guides us through what goes on behind the computer. With over two decades of cybersecurity expertise, Ramie has held a variety of executive and technical leadership roles, driving strategic initiatives and spearheading comprehensive security programs across multiple industries. As an Executive Cybersecurity Consultant, he has successfully guided high-profile clients in risk management, regulatory compliance, and cybersecurity strategy, helping organizations protect their critical assets while aligning security efforts with broader business objectives. And nonetheless, He's Tina's boyfriend! This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM.  Please reach out to Nate and the team: Nate@switchrcm.com  You will not regret it.  Those cats are doing some very interesting things.   Don't forget to like and subscribe!  

Great episode this week tackling the topic of consulting. How do we use it effectively? What challenges are consultants facing in the modern healthcare world? Incredible incites from Katy Ryan Michaud (VP of Rev Cycle at FMOL) and Judi Sarti (VP of Healthrise) This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM.  Please reach out to Nate and the team: Nate@switchrcm.com  You will not regret it.  Those cats are doing some very interesting things.   Don't forget to like and subscribe!  

We're coming to you live from Region 6 HFMA 2024! We had an incredible conversation with crowd participation, asking the real questions! We had some brilliant minds on stage with us: Ryan Duffy, Attorney at Miller Johnson. Ami Faria, Director of Reimbursement at Powerback. And the man the myth, the legend Kevin Lasser, CEO of RevKeep. This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM.  Please reach out to Nate at the team: Nate@switchrcm.com  You will not regret it.  Those cats are doing some very interesting things.   Don't forget to like and subscribe!

Ending our Live in Vegas series, we're back with the legendary Robert Boos! Being Vice President of Revenue Cycle at Centra Health, Robert gives exciting insite to the challenges he's facing in todays healthcare world as well as some creative solutions. This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM.  Please reach out to Nate and the team: Nate@switchrcm.com  You will not regret it. Don't forget to like and subscribe!

We are recording live in Vegas at HFMA Annual.  This is part 10 of our 10-part series that was recorded over 2 days and features some of the brightest minds in Revenue Cycle.  We're ending with our good friend Jill Buathier, Senior Vice President and Chief Revenue Cycle Officer at Stanford Health Care. This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM.  Please reach out to Nate at the team: Nate@switchrcm.com  You will not regret it.  Those cats are doing some very interesting things.   Don't forget to like and subscribe to the show.

We are recording live in Vegas at HFMA Annual.  This is part 9 of our 10-part series that was recorded over 2 days and features some of the brightest minds in Revenue Cycle.  I'm joined by Michael Mercurio, VP Physician Rev Cycle at MGB.   This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM.  Please reach out to Nate and the team: Nate@switchrcm.com  You will not regret it.  Those cats are doing some very interesting things.   Don't forget to like and subscribe to the show.  

We are recording live in Vegas at HFMA Annual.  This is part 8 of our 10-part series that was recorded over 2 days and features some of the brightest minds in Revenue Cycle.  We continue with my good friend Christine Aucreman. Christine is a multi-credentialed senior finance executive with more than 25 years of progressive leadership experience in the healthcare, manufacturing, and public accounting arenas. A dynamic team builder and thought leader who excels at transforming complex business challenges into focused action plans that maximize top line performance, optimize operational efficiency, and drive significant improvements in service delivery capabilities. Backed by strong professional credentials and certifications that include a CPA, CFE, CHFP, FHFMA and a Six-Sigma Black Belt.   This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM.  Please reach out to Nate at the team: Nate@switchrcm.com  You will not regret it.  Those cats are doing some very interesting things.   Don't forget to like and subscribe to the show.

We are recording live in Vegas at HFMA Annual.  This is part 6 of our 10-part series that was recorded over 2 days and features some of the brightest minds in Revenue Cycle.  We continue with my good friend Philip Boyce (Chief Revenue Officer / Baptist Health) who tells us his amazing story about ending up in Rev Cycle later in his career.  I remember when Philip came to our Leaders Forum many years ago having not worked in RCM before.  What an incredible gift to be able to watch how much he's taken in over the years to become an absolute expert in the space.   Take a listen!    This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM.  Please reach out to Nate at the team: Nate@switchrcm.com  You will not regret it.  Those cats are doing some very interesting things.   Don't forget to like and subscribe to the show.

We are recording live in Vegas at HFMA Annual.  This is part 6 of our 10-part series that was recorded over 2 days and features some of the brightest minds in Revenue Cycle.  We continue with my new friend Robert "The Bob" Boos (VP RCM at Centra Health).  Bob, Tina and I talked all things in this one.  From my Game of Thrones Soap Box to a brilliant idea about a dragon.  We had fund and may have talked a bit of Rev Cycle along the way.     This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM.  Please reach out to Nate at the team: Nate@switchrcm.com  You will not regret it.  Those cats are doing some very interesting things.   Don't forget to like and subscribe to the show.

We are recording live in Vegas at HFMA Annual.  This is part 5 of our 10-part series that was recorded over 2 days and features some of the brightest minds in Revenue Cycle.  We continue with my new friend Samantha Evans (Director PFS & Access at AnMed Health in South Carolina).  Samantha is an up and comer that everyone should be paying attention to.  Take a listen and get to know her story.     This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM.  Please reach out to Nate at the team: Nate@switchrcm.com  You will not regret it.  Those cats are doing some very interesting things.   Don't forget to like and subscribe to the show.

We are recording live in Vegas at HFMA Annual.  This is part 4 of our 10-part series that was recorded over 2 days and features some of the brightest minds in Revenue Cycle.  We continue with my  good friend for many years Jerry Yang who is the CFO at Aspirus Health.  Jerry has an incredible story of how he got to healthcare and doing what he does today.  I'm proud to know him and thankful that our paths have crossed randomly so many times.  We also share the love of bourbon, watches and cars. I actually bought one of his cars!  You won't regret listening to this one.    This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM.  Please reach out to Nate at the team: Nate@switchrcm.com  You will not regret it.  Those cats are doing some very interesting things.   Don't forget to like and subscribe to the show.  

We are recording live in Vegas at HFMA Annual.  This is part 3 of our 10-part series that was recorded over 2 days and features some of the brightest minds in Revenue Cycle.  We continue with my new good friend Emily Goertz (RCM Leader at UTMB).  Emily, Tina and I had a great conversation about all things rev cycle, vacationing and what it's like to live on an island.  Take a listen.    This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM.  Please reach out to Nate at the team: Nate@switchrcm.com  You will not regret it.  Those cats are doing some very interesting things.   Don't forget to like and subscribe to the show.  

We are recording live in Vegas at HFMA Annual.  This is part 2 of our 10-part series that was recorded over 2 days and features some of the brightest minds in Revenue Cycle.  We continue with my long time good friend in Harrison Lamons (RCM Leader at Privia Health).  Harrison worked for me right out of college and I couldn't be more proud of what he's done over the years.  We talk all things RCM and some old Accretive stories.  Come along for the ride.   This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM.  Please reach out to Nate at the team: Nate@switchrcm.com  You will not regret it.  Those cats are doing some very interesting things.   Don't forget to like and subscribe to the show.  

We are recording live in Vegas at HFMA Annual.  This 10-part series was recorded over 2 days and features some of the brightest minds in Revenue Cycle.  We kick it off with one of my favorite interviews.  Sari Green MD from Accuity joins the show and just kept bringing surprise after surprise.  What a powerful and complex story.  Buckle in for this one.   This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Switch RCM.  Please reach out to Nate at the team: Nate@switchrcm.com  You will not regret it.  Those cats are doing some very interesting things.   Don't forget to like and subscribe to the show...it all helps!    

Join us for this monthly series that we streamed live with Revenue Cycle Leaders. We will dive into a number of topics that leaders are faced with today including: Payers, Automation, Technology, Talent Shortages, Cost Takeout, etc. This will be an interactive session with questions from people who join. Our third episode brings my good friend Jen Snyder who leads the Automation Program at Colorado Medicine.  This series is sponsored by Tarpon Health.  A community of providers that are tackling automation as a strategy.  Check us out at Tarpon.health

Join us for this monthly series that we streamed live with Revenue Cycle Leaders. We will dive into a number of topics that leaders are faced with today including: Payers, Automation, Technology, Talent Shortages, Cost Takeout, etc. This will be an interactive session with questions from people who join. Our third episode brings my good friend Surya who is VP Revenue Cycle at Marshfield Clinic. This series is sponsored by Tarpon Health.  A community of providers that are tackling automation as a strategy.  Check us out at Tarpon.health

Emily Fry the VP of Innovation Operations at Geisinger Health joins us for a great conversation on pushing innovation in the complex world of health care. Fascinating to hear her journey into this enormous role and how to push innovation and know your being succesful at it. Appreciate Emily's willingness to dive in here and share about her journey.  Take a listen and let us know your thoughts.   Remember to leave a review and subscribe to the show.  

Our special guest this week is Sarah Armstrong, CEO of Trend Health Partners and my good friend from over the years.  Sarah has always shown me kindness and postivity.  Being in the business of people is built into her and with this episode we found out some of the "why".  Sarah opened up to us and walked us through her incredible journey.  Like any journey it's full of amazing highs and really low lows.  Through it all Sarah persevered and even changed Ben's mind on payor relationships.  It's a must listen podcast for this season.  Remember to like and subscribe!   Chapters 03:01 Payment Integrity and Communication Challenges 07:14 Making Small Changes in Healthcare 10:39 The Attitude Towards Fixing Healthcare 23:28 Personal Loss and Suffering 31:19 The Power of Empathy and Support 36:10 Embracing the Good and the Bad in Life 43:22 Leadership through Individual Connections 46:05 Showing Up for Others 48:11 Embracing Work-Life Fluidity and Authenticity 50:08 The Constant Pursuit of Improvement as a CEO 55:24 Engaging in Conversations about Healthcare and Revenue Cycle Management  

This episode we have our Good Friend Chanie Gluck on to tell us her story. Chanie is basically the carbon copy of Ben and we learn this throughout our time together. She talks about her role as the CEO and founder of 4D Global, a company that helps doctors get paid. She also discusses her podcasts, Growing Global and Leaders in Medical Billing, and the importance of community and mentorship in the entrepreneurial space. Chanie shares her upbringing in an Orthodox Jewish family, her early desire to start a business, and the influence of her parents in teaching her self-sufficiency and the value of hard work. She also talks about the impact of her entrepreneurial journey on her children and the importance of finding mentors who have success in all areas of life. She discusses the challenges she faced, including getting divorced and dealing with a shady boss, and how these experiences fueled her determination to succeed. Chapters 00:00 The Role of the 'Uninformed Sidekick'  06:23 Chanie's Podcasts: Growing Global and Leaders in Medical Billing 13:53 The Challenge of Finding Mentors 20:50 Chanie's journey and challenges 29:14 The power of Kairos moments 38:17 Building an offshore operation 41:13 Selling the billing company and focusing on 4D Global  43:49 Navigating the Challenges of the Workplace  45:06 The Power of Self-Awareness in Entrepreneurship 46:11 Creating Community and Connecting People 47:23 The Importance of Saying No 49:41 Personal Growth and Transformation in Entrepreneurship

Our special guest this episode is Jason Siedman who is the VP of Revenue Cycle at WellStar Health in Atlanta.  Jason tells his amazing story of how he got into revenue cycle and carved his own path.  A path that many of us can relate to with bad decisions and good ones.  A journey of self discovery to land in the best possible place...contentment.  Loved this episode because I love people's stories.   Check it out and remember to subscribe and leave a review!  

This episode we welcome the smartest person in AI that I know.  Ankit Jain who is the CEO and founder of Infinitus Systems. Infinitus is leading healthcare into bot driven phone calls to payers and its an absolutely incredible tech solution.  Ankit was the mind behind Google Play and has done multiple tech plays.  He walks us through a failure early on that is so beneficial for people to hear and learn from.   We talk about the practical uses of AI today and what it will be like 10 years from now.  Mind blowing stuff.  Do not miss out on this one.   Leave a review and subscribe to the show.  

This is the 2nd installment that features Seth Joseph who is the Managing Director at Summit Health and a Forbes contributing writer.  Seth wrote a 2 part article in Forbes outlining the pros and cons of having a super power company that is the EMR of the top 100 health systems.  https://www-forbes-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.forbes.com/sites/sethjoseph/2024/02/26/competitive-or-exclusionary-epics-seven-anti-competitive-sins/amp/ We are joined by Heather Dunn (Vanderbilt VP RCM) as a guest co-host and contributor.  We have had many a debate over the years (many of which we haven't published) and it was good to have another one.  Our hope in this episode is to open up the dialogue, not to bash any one company.   It's important to note that we believe Epic is a good company and has a tremendous product.  However, in the immortal words from SpiderMan, "With great power, comes great responsiblity".  And that is why we are opening the conversation, because power needs accountability to be great.    

This is a 2 part episode that features Seth Joseph who is the Managing Director at Summit Health and a Forbes contributing writer.  Seth wrote a 2 part article in Forbes outlining the pros and cons of having a super power company that is the EMR of the top 100 health systems.  https://www-forbes-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.forbes.com/sites/sethjoseph/2024/02/26/competitive-or-exclusionary-epics-seven-anti-competitive-sins/amp/ We are joined by Heather Dunn (Vanderbilt VP RCM) as a guest co-host and contributor.  We have had many a debate over the years (many of which we haven't published) and it was good to have another one.  Our hope in this episode is to open up the dialogue, not to bash any one company.   It's important to note that we believe Epic is a good company and has a tremendous product.  However, in the immortal words from SpiderMan, "With great power, comes great responsiblity".  And that is why we are opening the conversation, because power needs accountability to be great.      

Join us for this monthly series that we streamed live with Revenue Cycle Leaders. We will dive into a number of topics that leaders are faced with today including: Payers, Automation, Technology, Talent Shortages, Cost Takeout, etc. This will be an interactive session with questions from people who join. Our second episode brings my good friend Kelly Thornton who is Leader for Revenue Cycle for UT Southwestern.  Also past winner of my innovator of the year in revenue cycle (2022) and just one of the smartest rcm people I know.   This series is sponsored by Tarpon Health.  A community of providers that are tackling automation as a strategy.  Check them out at Tarpon.health

This is a solo pod that I recorded my thoughts on this crisis that has hit our Revenue Cycle Community.  Hopefully it's helpful to all of you.  

We tackle the taboo topic of Executive Compensation in business.  We are all over the place in this one and hit multiple subjects from founding a business to not for profit healthcare.  Special thanks to our guest Jon Scala (CloudMed) who is a 4x podcast guest.  Soon to be getting his 5 timers jacket.    

Join us for this monthly series that we streamed live with Revenue Cycle Leaders. We will dive into a number of topics that leaders are faced with today including: Payers, Automation, Technology, Talent Shortages, Cost Takeout, etc. This will be an interactive session with questions from people who join. Our first episode brings my good friend Scott Cooper who is the leader for Revenue Cycle at Ovation Healthcare. Scott is a seasoned veteran in healthcare and a pro at tackling large problems head on. Remember to like and subscribe to the show! 

We are back for Season 6!  We do our annual wrap up of 2023 and a peak into 2024.  We are joined by Heather Dunn (Vanderbilt) per usual to do some predictions for 2024 and our annual revenue cycle people awards.  It was so fun we went super long but frankly it was good all the way to the end.  Join us this season as we meet new people, do some coffee talks, tackle hard subjects and just have some fun.   Subscribe and leave a review if you can.   

Episode 100!!! Unreal people.  Unreal.  Who would have thought that we would have ever gotten to this point when we started 5 years ago.  We invited some our good friends to the show and heard what were some of their favorite moments on the podcast.  It was so fun!   Thanks to all who've listenend over the years.  We can't thank you enough.   On this episode:  Christine Aucreman - Trinity Health Casey Peters - Ovation Health Michael Mercurio - Mass General Brigham Ryan O'Hara - Acclara Katherine Zehner - Vanguard Physicians

Episode 100!!! Unreal people.  Unreal.  Who would have thought that we would have ever gotten to this point when we started 5 years ago.  We invited some our good friends to the show and heard what were some of their favorite moments on the podcast.  It was so fun!   Thanks to all who've listenend over the years.  We can't thank you enough.   On this episode:  Bill Eikost - Nemadji Jon Scala - Cloudmed Shay Eskew - CirclesX Kelly Kloeckler - UT Southwestern Jeff Means - Long Tail Health Heather Dunn - Vanderbilt Kevin Lasser - RevKeep

This is a special one for us.  We had our good friend Nio Queiro on the podcast in person to tell her story.  It's incredible people.  You have to listen to this.  It's important to hear the stories of our leaders in Revenue Cycle.  To fully understand people and where they've come from.  This is one of those.   So thankful for Nio and her vulnerability in sharing all of this.  We are excited about her new book coming out in 2024.  Look for it when it comes out.    

We were joined live in Ft Worth before our Leaders Forum event by my good friends Jeff Means (Long Tail Health) and Michael Mercurio (Mass General Brigham).  I forced them to listen to Part 1 (Episode: Are we losing the game to payers?) and got there reaction and talked more about it.  I think you'll find it interesting in continuing the conversation on how we have been losing the game.   Would love your take and your comments!  

Payers are absolutely tripling down on automation and AI.  And they aren't doing it to take cost out.  They are working hard to make there nurses doing payment integrity 10x more efficient.  If you thought they were messing around with their IT systems and were behind you have been sadly mistaken.  Take a listen to this solo episode of a rant I did on this subject (apologize in advance that I got fired up during this).  This is a must listen for all CFO's and RCM leaders.   We followup this episode with a conversation with some of my good friends about this topic in episode 17 coming out soon.  

Welcome to the podcast the incredibly talented Amy Amick the CEO of Aspirion.  You can't spend 10 mins with Amy and not be taken in by her infectious energy.  Her story is great and inspiring.  You have to check this one out.  Also I think I nailed the sneakers at the end...For those that inquire: Sneaker Gift was Nike Court Legacy Next Nature - White base with pink highlights.  

This episode we were LIVE at the Tri-State HFMA in Indiana with my good friends Christine Aucreman (Trinity) and Motti Edelstein (Allina).  We talked about Authentic Community and the benefits and requirements built into that.  It was a great discussion even with some questions from the audience.    

This episode we were joined by our good friends Kevin Lasser (RevKeep) and Jimmy Hoogewind (Sales/Marketing Genius @ Stellar Elements).  These guys are both sales people that come from very different backgrounds and schools of thought.  We took questions from our listeners off the last Sales episode and tried to answer them as best we could.  Loved the discussion and varying opinions.