New England Healthcare Financial Management Association

New England Healthcare Financial Management Association
Name	New England Healthcare Financial Management Association
Formation	1970s
Type	Professional association
Headquarters	Boston, Massachusetts
Region served	Connecticut; Maine; Massachusetts; New Hampshire; Rhode Island; Vermont
Membership	Healthcare finance professionals

New England Healthcare Financial Management Association The New England Healthcare Financial Management Association is a regional professional association serving finance leaders in hospitals, health systems, and healthcare organizations across Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It connects chief financial officers, controllers, revenue cycle directors, and finance staff with peers from institutions such as Massachusetts General Hospital, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Yale New Haven Hospital, Maine Medical Center, and Rhode Island Hospital. The association organizes education, certification support, policy briefings, and networking that intersect with entities like American Hospital Association, Healthcare Financial Management Association, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Kaiser Permanente, and Blue Cross Blue Shield affiliates.

History

The association traces roots to regional finance roundtables that emerged alongside expansions at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Tufts Medical Center during the late 20th century, reflecting broader trends exemplified by Medicare Modernization Act debates and cost pressures influenced by cases such as Roe v. Wade-era funding shifts. Early leaders included finance executives from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston Children's Hospital, and Connecticut Children's Medical Center, who modeled governance on national groups like Healthcare Financial Management Association and state-level organizations connected to Massachusetts Health Policy Commission deliberations. Over subsequent decades the association adapted to changes driven by landmark events such as the implementation of Affordable Care Act provisions, the adoption of ICD-10 coding, and responses to public health crises including the H1N1 pandemic and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Organization and Governance

Governance typically features a volunteer board of directors composed of chief financial officers, vice presidents, and treasurers from institutions such as Boston Medical Center, Beth Israel Lahey Health, UConn Health, and Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center. Committees oversee finance education, chapter relations, diversity initiatives, and government affairs, coordinating with state agencies like the Massachusetts Health Connector and regulatory bodies including Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Executive leadership often includes an executive director who liaises with national partners such as American Hospital Association and certification bodies like American Institute of Certified Public Accountants when aligning continuing professional education and compliance programming.

Membership and Chapters

Members comprise CFOs, controllers, reimbursement analysts, revenue cycle managers, and consultants from academic medical centers, community hospitals, behavioral health facilities, and physician groups including Lahey Hospital & Medical Center, St. Elizabeth's Medical Center, Bridgeport Hospital, and Parkland Health. Chapter structure spans state chapters in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont, with local activities coordinated alongside regional partners including New England Journal of Medicine affiliates and finance departments at universities such as Harvard Medical School and Yale School of Medicine. Institutional memberships facilitate multi-staff participation, and alliances with consulting firms like McKinsey & Company, Deloitte, and PwC provide sector benchmarking and advisory services.

Programs and Services

The association offers continuing professional education, certification review courses for credentials such as Certified Healthcare Financial Professional and Certified Public Accountant, and technical briefings on payment reform topics tied to Medicare Payment Advisory Commission recommendations and state Medicaid agencies. Workshops cover topics like revenue cycle optimization, bundled payment models similar to initiatives by Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, capital planning influenced by trends at American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, and cybersecurity risk management in coordination with standards advocated by National Institute of Standards and Technology. Vendor fairs and executive roundtables connect members with service providers including Epic Systems, Cerner Corporation, and regional insurers like Harvard Pilgrim Health Care.

Conferences and Events

Annual regional conferences attract speakers from academic centers, policy institutes, and government agencies, featuring case studies from Brigham and Women's Hospital, panel discussions with representatives from Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, and workshops led by consultants from KPMG and Ernst & Young. Specialty seminars address topics such as value-based purchasing, population health finance linked to Institute for Healthcare Improvement frameworks, and crisis budgeting illustrated by lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic response. Smaller symposia and networking events are hosted at venues near institutions like Fenway Park and conference centers in Boston, Providence, and Hartford.

Publications and Research

The association publishes newsletters, white papers, benchmarking reports, and technical guides that reference sources such as Health Affairs, The Commonwealth Fund, and research from university hospitals including Mass General Brigham affiliates. Research topics include cost accounting methodologies, analyses of payer mix shifts reflecting trends reported by Kaiser Family Foundation, and workforce financial modeling tied to licensure and credentialing bodies like National Association of Healthcare Access Management. Collaborative research projects have been undertaken with academic partners at Boston University School of Public Health and policy centers such as Urban Institute.

Community Engagement and Advocacy

Advocacy efforts focus on reimbursement policy, uncompensated care funding, and regulatory reform, engaging with state legislatures in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine and agencies like Massachusetts Department of Public Health and state Medicaid offices. Community programs include financial literacy initiatives for nonprofit hospital boards, partnerships with organizations such as United Way chapters, and fundraising collaborations with health foundations like Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and local hospital foundations. The association often files comment letters and provides testimony on payment models and reporting standards in coordination with networks including American Hospital Association and regional hospital associations.

Category:Healthcare finance organizations in the United States