As America’s rural hospitals continue to struggle with budget insecurity, many states have sought to develop reimbursement models that could shore up their providers’ finances and incentivize efficient population health models.

Pennsylvania hopes that its new Rural Health Model — an all-payer global reimbursement system — will do just that.

According to Health Data Management‘s Greg Slabodkin, participating rural hospitals will be paid “a fixed amount that is set in advance for inpatient and outpatient hospital-based services, and paid monthly by Medicare fee-for-service and all other participating payers.”

The hope is that the guaranteed income will simultaneously give hospitals the financial stability they need to develop proactive care models to improve population health, and place a hard cap on earnings that will force streamlined, cost-effective delivery.

Get the whole story here, in Health Data Management.