The Advisory Board, a health care research and consulting company, is featuring an interview with FAH President and CEO Chip Kahn this week for its ongoing series – “Lessons from the C-Suite.”

In this edition, Advisory Board President Eric Larsen talked to Chip about leading the Federation through four presidential administrations, the role that our organization has played in legislative history, and how virtual meetings have changed lobbying—for the better.

One question centered on legislative and regulatory priorities for FAH.

Eric asked Chip, “How are you seeing the for-profit hospital sector evolve? How did the pandemic accelerate, decelerate, or change course for that evolution?”

And Chip replied, “First, I think it’s too early to tell how the pandemic will impact our hospitals for a number of reasons. Despite the shutdowns and the supply issues, it hasn’t significantly affected operations with patient mix.

“Second, they’ve largely come through it financially, particularly with the government’s assistance. For the for-profits I can say that most appear to be strategically back on track. I can’t say the same is true for all nonprofit hospitals, and especially for rural hospitals, many of which are located in states hard hit by the pandemic shutdowns. Recovery for those hospitals is likely going to take much longer.

“The third we touched on a little earlier, and that’s telehealth and hospital-at-home care. Both of these were sped up by the pandemic and the payment system and how medical care is delivered has been completely changed. The role of the hospital is going to be changing and how it’ll be accommodated I think is another big question. I think we’re still in the midst of these changes and I don’t know what’s going to stick and what isn’t. Hospitals aren’t going anywhere, but the role and what defines success in hospitals is going to change.”

You can read the complete interview here.