By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    bowl of vegetable salad
    Raw Foods: benefits and harms
    November 9, 2021
    pros and cons of the keto diet
    Read This Before You Follow the Keto Diet
    May 18, 2022
    spinal cord injuries
    4 Potential Causes of Spinal Cord Injuries (and How to Seek Compensation)
    May 25, 2022
    Latest News
    7 Most Common Healthcare Accreditation Programs: Which Should You Use?
    August 20, 2025
    Hospital Pest Control and the Fight Against Superbugs
    August 20, 2025
    Hygiene Beyond The Clinic: Attention To Overlooked Non-Clinical Spaces
    August 13, 2025
    5 Steps to a Promising Career as a Healthcare Administrator
    August 3, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    The Hidden Epidemic of Nursing Home Abuse
    February 16, 2021
    Smiles Make the World Go Around
    August 25, 2017
    Those Pesky Tension Headaches
    September 12, 2017
    Latest News
    How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
    August 20, 2025
    How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
    August 20, 2025
    How One Fall Can Lead to a Long Road of Medical Complications
    August 20, 2025
    How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
    July 17, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: What Healthcare Facilities are Doing to Cut Costs and Remain Competitive
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Business > Finance > What Healthcare Facilities are Doing to Cut Costs and Remain Competitive
BusinessFinanceHospital Administration

What Healthcare Facilities are Doing to Cut Costs and Remain Competitive

Phil Cohen
Phil Cohen
Share
6 Min Read
cutting costs at hospitals
SHARE

With healthcare costs on the rise, hospitals and other healthcare facilities are looking for ways to cut costs and make their rates more competitive. Here are just some ways hospitals are able to cut costs.

Contents
  • Separate Hazardous Waste From Non-Hazardous Waste
  • Switch to Less Expensive Products
  • Shop Around for Energy Rates
  • Reduce Wasted Food
  • Look for Administrative Changes to Save
  • Reduce Losses From Denied Claims
  • Keeping Up The Standard of Care

Separate Hazardous Waste From Non-Hazardous Waste

Because hazardous waste is more costly to dispose of, properly separating hazardous waste (i.e. red-bagged material) from non-hazardous materials can help curtail costs. According to John Hopkins researchers, it’s estimated that as much as 90 percent of red-bagged waste is not hazardous. Hospitals should make goals to cut red-bagged waste. This can be done by educating hospital employees about what should and shouldn’t be red-bagged.

Switch to Less Expensive Products

Because of the volume that hospitals go through of things like napkins, trash bags, and hand sanitizer, it’s amazing how much can be saved by switching to a less expensive product. At the Sacred Heart Hospital in Wisconsin, they made a few switches that saved almost $100,000 dollars in a year. What were the changes? Switching from bottled soda to fountain drinks, switching to a less expensive trash can liner, and changing medical journal subscriptions to be electronic instead of printed. If you’re lacking in ideas for money-saving ideas, consider starting a rewards program with hospital staff. Ask employees to give ideas for how the hospital can save money and, if the idea pans out, give a percentage of the savings to the employee who submitted the idea.

Shop Around for Energy Rates

With some states becoming deregularized, hospitals can now shop around for an energy provider. In the 1990s, the energy market began to become deregularized so that some areas now had more than one supplier, helping prevent monopolies and giving consumers a more competitive rate. Hospital use a lot of energy and with how deregulation works today, switching energy providers has the potential of saving tens of thousands of dollars each year.

More Read

Health Care Buzz Today
From Yellow Pages to Google My Hospital
CEO Interview: Michael Moe On GSV Capital, A New Vehicle To Finance Growth Companies
Bruce Bethancourt on Building the Medical Group of Tomorrow [TRANSCRIPT]
Increasing Hospital Risks

Reduce Wasted Food

Every day, patients staying in the hospital are provided with three square meals. How much of that is eaten and how much of it ends up in the garbage? Hospitals looking to save money have found that weighing food is a great way to prevent waste. This starts by using a system that tracks what’s thrown away and why. The hospital can then use that information to adjust how much is served or what foods are served. This leads to less waste and less money spent.

Look for Administrative Changes to Save

Take time to look at how the hospital runs and assess whether there are changes that can be made to save money. For example, negotiate with the bank for better deals on banking costs. IT departments are often far cheaper when they’re outsourced rather than having the IT department in-house. Take a look at the vendors that supply the hospital. Often you’ll find that multiple vendors take care of similar products. By consolidating these products to come from one vendor, you can negotiate bulk rates and get these items for cheaper and with less overhead.

Reduce Losses From Denied Claims

One common way for hospitals to lose money is with claims that are denied by insurance companies. Rather than continuing to be frustrated by lost income, take some time and assess why the claims are being lost. For example, one hospital, which was losing $380,000 per month in lost claims, identified that many claims were denied because they weren’t filed within 45 days, which was required for a claim to be accepted. Just by changing policies regarding how paperwork is handled, the hospital was able to decrease the number of denied claims significantly.

Keeping Up The Standard of Care

Making sure that everyone gets the appropriate care is important both professionally and financially. Not treating someone correctly or at all could have them hiring a medical malpractice attorney like the one seen at Ericratinoff.com because of receiving poor care. These lawsuits can cost hospitals and doctors immense amounts of money and headaches so avoiding them at all costs is important. Just like with anything, inflation causes health care costs to rise, but other outside factors (such as Obamacare) are causing artificially inflated costs as well. As consumers become more involved in reducing their health care costs, they’ll start shopping around for their medical needs rather than just accepting the costs. By using the above steps, your hospital can pass on savings to patients. Make sure to not cut costs that sacrifice the quality of care or you could find yourself in an expensive medical malpractice lawsuit. (cutting costs / shutterstock)

Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

engineer fitting prosthetic arm
How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
Health care
August 20, 2025
a woman explaining the document
How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
Public Health
August 20, 2025
physiotherapist at work
How One Fall Can Lead to a Long Road of Medical Complications
Health care
August 20, 2025
Common Healthcare Accreditation Programs
7 Most Common Healthcare Accreditation Programs: Which Should You Use?
Health News
August 20, 2025

You Might also Like

What is a Safety Net Provider? Interview with NAPH CEO Dr. Bruce Siegel

May 11, 2011

Improving Clinical Workflow, Physician Satisfaction with Health IT

May 30, 2014

Microsoft Innovation Awards 2011

March 11, 2011

Imaging Tests Available Stat! The Blame Game Isn’t Necessary

March 9, 2012
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?