Authority reports improved margins, revenue gains and denials-management work; committee approves February financials

Coleman 'Cole' Griffith, the Authority's accounting manager, presented the February 2026 financial statements and called February "a strong month." He reported gross patient revenue of $25.8 million, net patient revenue of $6.6 million (about $911,000 favorable to a $5.7 million budget), total revenue of $13.8 million, and an operating margin of $107,000 for the month. Year-to-date operating margin was presented as roughly $4,285,000 — a presenter-provided improvement figure compared with the prior year.

Committee members asked why inpatient revenue exceeded outpatient for the month; Cole attributed the shift to rate increases from Medicare and Blue Cross Blue Shield and to DRG-related inpatient activity. On the expense side, Cole said February expenses were about $13.7 million, roughly $1.1 million over budget but down from January's expense level.

Dr. Blackledge and staff also described revenue-cycle improvements: cash performance trends, an unbilled metric of 4.47 for February, and expanded denials-management work led by Faith Reid in partnership with a vendor called Cofactor to reduce denials and speed collections. The committee moved to approve the financial statements and carried the voice vote. The chair scheduled the next meeting for 04/30/2026 at 3 p.m.