Tax Exempt Hospitals Still Profit, Copycat PBM Killers, & How AI Scribes Are Being Used

Hey all,

Happy Tuesday! Paul Keckley’s post on not-for-profit hospitals offers a clear blueprint for how these institutions could more effectively serve their communities. One can only hope hospital executives take his recommendations to heart—though, admittedly, I’m not holding my breath. Enjoy the rundown!

Jacob Brody (Co-Founder & CEO, ZorroRX)

(The Keckley Report) Tax Exempt Status for Not-for-Profit Hospitals

Not-for-profit hospitals are under increasing scrutiny as critics and policymakers question whether their tax-exempt status is still justified amid rising healthcare costs, reduced competition from hospital consolidation, and questionable business practices. As more than half of U.S. community hospitals claim nonprofit status, the debate is intensifying at a time when the industry faces Medicaid cuts, transparency mandates, and Medicare Advantage cost pressures—all threatening hospital financial stability. To retain tax exemptions, the report urges NFP hospitals to modernize community benefit standards, better integrate public health, and embrace global capitation models—or at the very least, not buy a Super Bowl ad. Full Article

(Axios) Arkansas PBM Law Could Spur Copycats

Arkansas has enacted a groundbreaking law that bans pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) from owning pharmacies, prompting at least six other states to consider similar restrictions aimed at curbing PBM influence on drug pricing and protecting independent pharmacies. As federal action stalls, states like Indiana, Mississippi, and Virginia are exploring laws to limit PBM practices such as patient steering, spread pricing, and opaque reimbursement rates that critics say inflate costs and reduce access. The PBM industry’s outcry over the law rings a bit hollow—cue the crocodile tears from the same folks who didn’t blink when their practices helped shutter independent pharmacies. Full Article.

(Healthcare Huddle) Ambient AI in Clinical Documentation 

Jared Dashevsky pens a deep dive into ambient AI in healthcare. His post reveals that while tools like AI scribes can reduce documentation time—saving Kaiser Permanente physicians a collective 15,700 hours—the individual time saved per note is often negligible, raising questions about the tech’s true value. Although ambient AI shows promise for high-volume clinicians, the article argues that its cognitive demands and uneven ROI suggest more impactful applications for generative AI, such as summarizing patient data or enhancing clinical search tools. Full Article.