The Caretech
Budgetwire Blog
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Caretech Group's Budgetwire Blog addresses the complex budgetary issues facility
executives face. We're interested in hearing your personal experiences
and challenges each month.
Steve Katz, Vice President of Business Development at Caretech Group and Lecturer on Health Services Administration at City University of New York's Lehman College hosts Caretech's Budgetwire Blog. Mr Katz has over 25 years industry experience and 12 years experience lecturing future industry leaders.
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 Budgetary Planning v.
Budgetary Chaos
Dear ,
Our
industry is facing unprecedented revenue challenges, and now is the time to
seriously consider how Caretech's innovative services can lessen the
operational pressures of pending budgetary cuts.
New York State is looking at a
potential budget deficit for fiscal 2010-2011 of at least $6.0 Billion. We can expect Medicaid to absorb a
significant portion on the resulting cuts. Medicare is also looking to reduce reimbursement too. With market basket and recalibration
adjustments, Medicare may reduce skilled nursing reimbursement by 1.2%, or $1.0
Billion. The reimbursement reductions
that many facilities implemented after the Medicaid cuts in the 2009-2010 will
make the 2010 operating budget extremely difficult with the new cuts required.
Caretech
provides your facilities with options that reduce operating expenses without
impacting direct care staffing and the related quality. By outsourcing Purchasing and Account Payable
functions to Caretech, you facility benefits from immediate and dramatic
reductions in these back of the house labor expenses. Caretech also reduces expenses in Food
Service, Housekeeping/Janitorial, Medical Surgical and Incontinence Supply cost
centers.
Caretech
has an aggressive approach that combines price, utilization, and the delivery
of timely information - empowering the management team to give the control that
is needed. Using Key Performance
Indicators, your management team will make purchasing and operational decisions
that meet your budgetary requirement.
Ours is an ongoing relationship because we know that controlling these
expenses requires constant supervision.
Given
the extent of the recession it is likely that reimbursement will be difficult
for the foreseeable future. With over
7000 SNF beds served, Caretech can facilitate expense reduction and
operations/quality improvement.
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State of the Art Procurement
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The
first half of the year is almost at an end and the Finance Department is about
to complete its regulatory mandates.
Annual Audits are finished, the Medicare Cost Report has been submitted
to CMS and the Medicaid Cost Report will be transmitted soon to NYSDOH if it
hasn't been already. The Finance
Department has but a moment to catch its breath as many organizations gear up
for the 2010 Budget. Unfortunately in
too many instances, the Operations staff may not be in possession of timely
Expense versus Budget Variance Reports.
How can you begin to plan 2010 when you don't fully understand what has
occurred in 2009?
The
Annual Audit and Cost Reports become an all consuming set of tasks during the
first half of the year at many organizations.
Many other necessary tasks, like the issuance of Variance Reports are
either delayed or don't begin until the Cost Reports are completed. This is problematic for the Operations staff
since they don't have their arms around expense issues without variance
reports. So the middle of the year arrives and Department Heads are bombarded
with reports highlighted with unfavorable cumulative variances that cannot be
easily addressed - if they can be resolved at all. These problems needed to be
addressed in February in order to be analyzed and fully eliminated prior to
budget preparations. Yet, Department
Heads must begin developing the 2010 Expense Budget while they are still coming
to grips with 2009.
An
innovative institutional procurement tool provides a solid answer to this
daunting set of circumstances faced by Department Heads. Caretrak Plus, provided by Caretech of
Brooklyn, New York, provides par levels with "real teeth." The system is a sophisticated online medical
and institutional supply "shopping cart", that delivers requisitions directly
to the managerial staff at Caretech in real time. Purchase requisitions that pierce monthly par
levels require administrative approval before the order is placed. Oversight is established and control is established
for supply expenses. Caretrak Plus provides
facility managers with a weekly Budget Spend Down Report linked to the monthly
budget. Prorated to reflect the specific
week of the month, the Spend Down Report is delivered in "real time" assuring
compliance with the budget every month (absent unique circumstances that
nursing homes deal with).
Caretrak
Plus gives both control and data directly to the end user with its procurement
functionality, but additionally it provides comprehensive reports that
facilitate analysis between onsite Department Heads and Caretech's strategic
review team, eliminating the budgetary surprises that wreck budgetary
compliance and profitability alike.
Cartech additionally offers Accounts Payable Management Services to its
premier clientele, and the ability for facility accounting staff to directly
access Requisitions, Purchase Orders, Shipping Receipts and Invoices online at
the touch of a finger. Caretrak Plus standard
reports include:
- Real Time Supply Expense Reports
- Actual v. Budgeted Expenditure Reports
- Weekly Spend Down Reports
- Detailed & Summary Budget Analysis
Tools
- Benchmarking Tools
Many
institutional purchasing professionals would breathe easier with a tool like Caretrak
Plus available to them, but the "plus" in Caretrak is access to an executive
team hat provides the administrative and analytical expertise to stretch taut
budgets even further.
Caretech
extends the value of the Caretrak Plus tool by managing price and the utilization
of supplies. This specialized function, assures
that facilities operate efficiently and effectively throughout the entire year,
even when the Finance Department is focused on its regulatory mandates. Our
strategic partnerships with vendors and customers alike, solidifies the client
infrastructure, facilitates timely analysis and the ability of executives to
respond to budget variances quickly.
Caretech's focus takes the blind guesswork out of structuring budgets
and delivers the ability to plan, as well as the tangible supplies!
* Caretrak Plus is a TM of Caretech Group, Brooklyn, NY 11230
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I sincerely hope you've found our first edition of the Budgetwire informative and that you'll take
this opportunity to discover the difference that Caretech can make for your
facility.
Call me at 914.400.7124 and we
will meet with you at your earliest convenience.
Sincerely,
Steve Katz
Vice President
Business Development
Caretech Group |
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