LHD board hears annual audit report
At Monday’s regular meeting, the Lavaca Hospital District Board of Directors heard the district’s annual audit/cost report for the year ending Dec. 31, 2023.
Representing Forvis Mazars, Deborah Whitley displayed a power-point presentation reporting on the hospital’s history of collections, accounts receivable, liabilities, income statement and operating expenses for the past fiscal year.
Whitley informed the board of what is going on in the health care industry.
She listed and explained four items that included:
• Economic challenges in regards to wage pressures.
• Dilution of Medicare involving increasing pressure to lure Medicare participants as Medicare Advantage expands.
• Negotiations with payouts regarding increasing disputes over payment rates.
• Cybersecurity involving insurance coverage for cyber breaches.
Presenting an overview of the financial statements, Whitley said, “You had a good year. There were a lot of really good things that happen when I look at your financial statements.
Whitley said LMC’s service revenue showed additional patient growth and the net patient revenue increased marginally.
This means you collected on a margin about 28% and if I gave a grade report, that is pretty respectable,” Whitley said. “That puts you (LMC) in line, or exceeds, what your peers are doing. A lot of the hospitals collect on the average of 24-25%.”
In addition, Whitley said, “If I had to grade a report card by a couple of things, I would say that 28% is pretty respectable and the other way is cash is up from where it was last year.”
Whitley said cash is up and collections look good on the growth.
Administration/Financial Report:
Lavaca Medical Center administrator, Steve Bowen, presented the administration and financial report for May.
Bowen said Hospital Week was held during the second week of May.
He reported a mass casualty drill will be held on Aug. 2 at 7 a.m. at the football field area. Bowen said they have been planning meetings on how the drill will be run and assessed.
The drill would be in regards to a bus turnover and would involve students from Hallettsville High School, the fire, police and sheriff’s departments as well as the Lavaca County EMS and Lavaca Medical Center.
Bowen spoke about physician recruitment saying Dr. Cody Selzer and mid-level April Hall are both seeing patients as of Tuesday, June 18, and a contract has been signed with Dr. Theresa Janssen, who may start in July.
Also, LMC now has two gastroenterologists with one seeing patients on Monday and Tuesday and another on Wednesday and Thursday, and Bowen said he is in negotiations with a third GI, who would see patients on Friday.
Bowen said they had a clinic Medicaid survey a couple of weeks ago and no deficiencies were found.
He said LMC is due a trauma survey from the state of Texas that will take place in January.
He said the PT/Wellness project is moving along and he expects to hold a special-called meeting in August to address it.
Regarding the May financial report based on year-to-date, Bowen said the gross district revenue is up 1%, while the total district revenue was down 3%.
The clinic’s patient revenue was up 4%.
Board president James Fenner presided over the meeting with board members Gene Schott, Rosanne Gallia, Doug Kubicek, Forrest Kroschel and Ronnie Juenke attending the meeting.