Cedar

As healthcare affordability challenges intensify, providers face a triple threat: ▪️ Rising patient financial stress ▪️ Declining collection rates ▪️ Tighter operating margins Traditional billing improvements aren’t enough—because patients can’t pay what they can’t afford. Join Sunny Eappen of The University of Vermont Health Network and Laura Herman of Cedar for a Modern Healthcare webinar to explore how leading health systems are addressing affordability upstream to improve the patient experience and financial performance. Register now to save your spot: https://lnkd.in/erWGyeUp

In the rush to manage claims and clear AR, systems built to maximize reimbursement overlooked one thing. And it might explain why most providers can't tell you what they're billing patients. The missing piece? Real people facing real bills—and, as Spencer Graves discusses in our latest blog, it has real implications for both mission and margin: https://lnkd.in/eupPTaVW

For years, self-pay and underinsured patients made up a small fraction of healthcare revenue. But today, that’s changed—dramatically. As high-deductible health plans grow and coverage gaps widen, these patients now account for an outsized share of patient-owed dollars, creating significant financial strain on providers. During our CEO Council, Cedar President Seth Cohen made one thing clear: affordability is no longer just a back-office challenge—it’s a strategic imperative. Key takeaways from the discussion: 📈 The self-pay surge is real – With more financial responsibility shifting to patients, providers must rethink their approach. 💵 Traditional collection strategies aren’t working – The old models fail to meet patients where they are. 💡 Action is needed now – Leading healthcare organizations are prioritizing affordability to improve patient experience and financial outcomes.

87% of healthcare finance leaders agree: Strained payer-provider relationships are hindering optimal patient care. Billing and payment improvements help, but they don’t solve the core issue of care being unaffordable for so many patients. Addressing this challenge requires a shift upstream, from reactive billing to proactive financial engagement. What does that look like? It means connecting patients with financial resources before the billing cycle even begins. Hear more insights from Cedar's Seth Cohen from our recent Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA) webinar: https://lnkd.in/eS_rfQhG

Waiting to see how AI hype shakes out? Montefiore Health System's George Stein explains why that might be a mistake 👇 Watch the full conversation: https://lnkd.in/eQ7TdvYi

At our recent 2025 CEO Council, we had the privilege of hosting 40 leading health system CEOs. These leaders shape the future of healthcare delivery in America, and over three days we challenged assumptions and explored new ways of thinking about the root causes of the healthcare affordability crisis and the transformative power of artificial intelligence. Read our latest blog from CEO Florian Otto for the key themes that emerged from these candid conversations: https://bit.ly/4jvIdNv

Spencer Graves has worked with health systems big and small. Not much surprises him anymore—but this still does: Most providers can tell you their total patient payments down to the penny. But ask those same organizations how much they billed to patients? Shockingly, often, they don’t know. ➡️ Why? It's hard to track patient responsibility in systems designed to optimize insurance reimbursement, which has major implications for both mission and margin. Spencer explains in our latest blog: https://lnkd.in/eupPTaVW

A new survey from Gallup has confirmed a sobering trend that we at Cedar have been tracking for some time: More Americans than ever cannot afford to pay for healthcare. A few stats that stood out to me: ∙ 11% of adults couldn’t afford needed care or medications in the past 3 months—the highest rate in 4 years ∙ 91 million adults say they wouldn’t be able to pay if they did need care ∙ Only about half of Americans are now considered “Cost Secure”—able to access and afford quality healthcare This survey is indicative of a system-level failure, and the need to acknowledge that the old billing model in healthcare is broken. In a recent perspective, I unpacked this very issue and how a dose of financial preventive care can help address America’s affordability crisis: https://lnkd.in/gvEedCQX 

“There’s much more movement right now…in terms of [patients’] financial situations, where they live. They’re much more willing right now to switch providers. How to engage with each patient is way more important." - Florian Otto, CEO and Co-Founder of Cedar, on looking back at the impact of COVID-19 on the healthcare industry Read more in Healthcare Brew by Maia Lura Anderson ➡️ https://lnkd.in/e63rKgSx

We're excited to be part of next week's Healthcare Finance Institute and connect with revenue cycle and healthcare finance leaders nationwide!