Today on HITshow:







Modest wins and mounting pressures for hospital operations. Today's HITshow Daily covers CMS's 2026 physician fee schedule increases, surging CEO turnover worrying boards, and MetroHealth's credit downgrade. Then in our second half, Medicaid work requirements create planning urgency, another 92K-patient email breach, and CMS pledges payment accuracy crackdown.







HOST: RHONDA BROOKS







📍 Physician Payment — Teresa Vaughn







CMS finalizes 2026 Physician Fee Schedule with 3.77% increase for most services, 3.26% for primary care visits. Modest gains barely pace inflation, requiring hospitals to maintain creative recruitment strategies beyond compensation adjustments.







📍 Leadership Turnover — Logan Stokes







Hospital CEO exits jump 12% year-over-year (January-September), creating strategy gaps and hampering long-term initiatives. Boards need proactive succession planning and deeper internal leadership pipelines beyond reactive C-suite searches.







📍 Credit Rating — Logan Stokes







Moody's downgrades MetroHealth to Baa3 with negative outlook, citing liquidity and operational pressures. Signal that many hospitals struggle despite outpatient growth. CFOs should monitor debt service coverage and days cash on hand closely.







📍 Medicaid Policy — Peter Betterworth







Managed care plans urge CMS for clearer Medicaid work requirements guidance, requesting details on eligibility verification, appeals, and exemptions. Hospitals should scenario-plan now for eligibility churn, ED volume increases, and expanded charity care exposure.







📍 Cybersecurity — Anika Shah







Oglethorpe mental health network reports email compromise affecting 92,000 patients. Attack highlights persistent email security vulnerabilities. Multi-factor authentication, least-privilege access, and vendor mailbox monitoring remain critical basics often treated as afterthoughts.







📍 Payment Integrity — Nate Collier







CMS highlights efforts to cut wasteful spending and improve chronic care management with vague operational details. Agency recalls 3,000 federal staff during shutdown to maintain Medicare and ACA enrollment. Hospitals should expect heightened payment accuracy scrutiny alongside potential enrollment processing delays.







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