FCBJ 052013

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FAIRFIELD COUNTY

BUSINESS JOURNAL YOUR ONLY SOURCE FOR REGIONAL BUSINESS NEWS | westfaironline.com

May 20, 2013 | VOL. 49, No. 20

SPECIAL REPORT

FCBJ this week tHe viggiano BrotHers of the Two Men and a Truck moving franchise give their tips on how to make a business relocation seamless and less expensive … 2 cannonDale is moving its corporate headquarters to Wilton with the help of state incentives … 3 sacreD Heart university launched a sports science clinic earlier this month to promote fitness and help prevent future health complications … 12

Billing, reimbursement data reveal disparities HOSPITALS FORCED TO SHIFT COSTS TO PRIVATE PAYERS TO MEET MARGINS

BY PATRICK GALLAGHER pgallagher@westfairinc.com

N

ew data on hospital charges and Medicare reimbursements released by the federal government illustrate the challenges facing hospitals as they seek to accommodate what one executive described as an “antiquated” system. The figures detail the 100 procedures that were most frequently performed on Medicare recipients from Oct. 1, 2010, to Sept. 20, 2011, by more than 3,000 hospitals, and include the amounts individual

hospitals charged on average for specific procedures and the average amounts they were reimbursed by Medicare. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), a federal agency that falls under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, released the massive data set May 10 as part of efforts at achieving greater transparency around the U.S. health care system. The CMS data reveal a great degree of variance — both nationally and in Fairfield County — in what different hospitals charge for the same procedures. Of greater signifi-

» Hospitals, page 6

Suit examines employer liability

state legislators are hoping that changes to the state’s renewable energy standards will help spur new clean energy projects … 15

2013

MEDIA PARTNER

cance, hospital representatives say, is that the data show there is an equally visible gulf between the costs hospitals incur and what they are reimbursed by Medicare for any given procedure or treatment. “Health care is a very emotionally charged issue,” said Gary G. Piantedosi, founder and principal of CBP, a Stamford consulting and benefit management firm. A store might mark up their products by 1,000 percent, but people can choose not to shop there. When someone goes to the hospital, they rarely have a choice in the matter.

FAIRFIELD COUNTY

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BY PATRICK GALLAGHER pgallagher@westfairinc.com

C

onrad Murray was convicted in November 2011 of involuntary manslaughter in the death of pop icon Michael Jackson prior to a 2009 comeback tour. But the key question under examination in the civil lawsuit Katherine Jackson v. AEG Live L.L.C. is whether the buck should stop there. Westport attorney and medical malpractice specialist Michael Koskoff and three of his colleagues are in Los Angeles as members of the Jackson family’s legal team, which is claiming that tour pro-

UNDER

» suit, page 8

+ MEET THE WINNERS | PAGE 7

16 Diageo

goes ‘green’


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