Change Healthcare cyberattack affecting hospital finances, care access

The majority of hospitals say the Change Healthcare cyberattack is negatively affecting their finances and hindering patient care access, according to a survey from the American Hospital Association (AHA).

Change Healthcare processes 15 billion healthcare transactions each year and touches one in every three patient records. These transactions include services directly affecting patient care, including claims transmittals, payments, eligibility verifications, and pharmacy operations.

Following the cyberattack on February 21, AHA gathered responses from nearly 1,000 hospitals about the disruption’s impact between March 9 and March 12.

Nearly three-quarters (74 percent) of responding hospitals reported direct patient care impacts. Around 40 percent of hospitals said patients are having difficulty accessing care because of delays in processing health plan utilization requirements, such as prior authorization.

Even more hospitals (94 percent) reported experiencing financial impacts from the cyberattack, with over half noting significant or serious consequences. Eighty-two percent of hospitals said the disruption has affected their cash flow, 33 percent of which reported an impact on more than half of their revenue.

Almost 60 percent of respondents said the revenue impact is $1 million per day or higher, and 44 percent reported that these adverse effects on revenue will continue for two to four more months.

More than 20 percent of hospitals are currently uncertain about how severely the cyberattack will impact their revenue cycle, according to the survey.

Hospitals have implemented workarounds to manage the consequences of the cyberattack, but they are labor-intensive and costly, respondents said. Nearly two-thirds of hospitals said it is difficult or very difficult to switch clearinghouses. Most hospitals (81 percent) said the workarounds are only somewhat successful, while 11 percent have not found them successful.

Hospitals’ finances have been rocky since the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Since 2020, facilities have seen periods of recovery, but margins, expenses, and revenues are still oscillating month to month. The Change Healthcare cyberattack has created additional financial instability for hospitals and providers and has disrupted patient care access.

A survey from the Massachusetts Health & Hospital Association found that Massachusetts hospitals are losing at least $24 million per day, with 75 percent reporting disruptions to claims processing, pharmacy operations, and the ability to obtain patient data.