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March 25, 2021
ST. LOUIS, March 25, 2021 (Newswire) – TAG Inc., the leader in healthcare procure to pay (P2P) optimization, cost savings, and consulting, announces its strategic partnership with LAVA Technology Services to expand its cost-saving services to health systems across the U.S. This partnership expands the savings potential for new and existing TAG clients by using the buying power and expertise of LAVA experts and engineers to get the lowest available pricing for their telecom, mobile, colocation, cloud, and security services. “We’re excited for the additional savings we can offer our clients – not to mention the increased efficiencies from […]
December 21, 2020
Cyberattacks have been a growing threat in healthcare over the past year and there is no end in sight. In fact, one Georgia University Hospital reported defending against 550 cyberattacks on their Epic MyChart system each day – 20% of them coming from emails to staff. However, not all attacks are defended. In 2019, 41.4 million patient records were compromised – almost three times more than in 2018, and the COVID-19 pandemic heightened this in 2020 as many healthcare workers moved to virtual workspaces. Recent survey results suggest that 1,500 healthcare providers are vulnerable to data breaches of 500 or […]
October 18, 2020
Collecting your vendor statements is essential to holding healthcare vendors accountable and ensuring the accuracy of pricing, inventory, supplies, and services received. Reconciling vendor statements allows your Accounts Payable (AP) department to monitor accounts and prevent potential credit holds. Statement collection may be the only way to capture missed credits that were not correctly sent to your organization. Periodic statement collection ensures you capture all available credits, preventing vendors from unauthorized use or escheatment to the state, and saving your AP team from time spent chasing unclaimed property. While the benefits of vendor statement collection are vast, health systems do […]
September 28, 2020
US Healthcare supply chain overspends by $25.4B each year, equating to 30 percent of total spend in the industry. Healthcare supply chain leaders must be proactive to eliminate the causes that contribute to this overspend, starting with the first line of defense – supplier contracting. Healthcare systems must review their general agreements and additional clauses to ensure they include the information below to protect against overcharges and other causes of leaked funds. Freight Charges Freight charges must be addressed in each supplier contract to include the party responsible for paying the freight. Organizations are encouraged to negotiate freight charges to […]
September 13, 2020
Manufacturing medical devices in the US is $47B a year industry with implantable devices accounting for $26.75B. With revenue values this high accounting for essential life-saving equipment, it is important for healthcare system leaders to understand the true or total cost of ownership. This not only means the original purchase of the devices but also takes into account equipment warranties. Afterall, warranties exist to mitigate the risks related to ownership and help create vendor reliability. However, the healthcare industry as a whole continues to struggle to manage their warranties, especially when it comes to implantable devices. Getting greater insight into […]
August 17, 2020
With over 30%* of all operational expenses, purchased services can be a revealing spend category for healthcare systems. Why? Purchased services often act as a litmus test for how well an organization systematizes its operations, communicates across departments, and optimizes their resources. Ultimately over the next decade, the health systems that fine-tune their purchased services management process will thrive, while everyone else falls behind.Purchased Services Quick Facts: Purchased services include any and all services that are performed by a third-party vendor rather than done by the health system itself. Examples include landscaping services, credit card processing, and transcription. Health systems […]
August 10, 2020
A positive supplier relationship builds trust and loyalty – both important foundations when it comes to negotiating new contracts. Building on trust and loyalty with your suppliers can have financial reward such as: Avoid overcharges. Suppliers may be understaffed or have inefficient systems leading to charges on supplies or services higher than the agreed-upon terms. Recover and avoid duplicate payments. Duplicate payments happen in all health systems, but loyalty with suppliers can help keep them honest and return the duplicated payment before inquiring about it. Avoid charges for services not rendered. Purchased services can be complex to manage leading to […]
July 16, 2020
Blanket purchase orders (POs) are often used to help reduce system costs, operate with only necessary inventory, and increase purchasing power. Nonetheless, blanket POs are often a source of lost funds for a healthcare system. Typically, TAG recommends limiting or eliminating the use of blanket POs because of the associated risks. We recognize, however, that some situations necessitate the use of a blanket PO. When those circumstances arise, your system should consider the following risks and implement preventative measures to reduce those risks. 1. Lack of Required Information Blanket POs often lack many of the standard controls found within traditional […]
July 1, 2020
TAG, Inc., formerly The Audit Group, helped healthcare systems recoup over $6,000,000 during its two-month COVID-19 Pay-it-Forward Recovery Program. The program took place in May and June of 2020, providing Accounts Payable (AP) and contract recovery audits at no cost or obligation to healthcare systems and hospitals. What was the Pay-it-forward program? Due to the hardships COVID-19 has placed on healthcare providers, TAG dedicated all of its resources to providing free recovery audits – foregoing revenue from May 1, 2020, through June 30, 2020, for all participating health systems. “This has been the most rewarding venture we’ve done in […]
