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Industry insider insights from the professionals at UHC Solutions.

Update on Compensation Trends Affecting FQHCs

We’ve seen a lot of changes to the work world since COVID came on the landscape. In healthcare, the pandemic affected provider burnout, even as a new administration came into Washington and began to change the regulatory landscape. Simultaneously to the pandemic, more non-clinical teams began working from home. Healthcare systems sent administrative tasks like billing and coding remote; many employees found that they liked it.

The global pandemic changed how we feel about work, our work models, and even what we value. All industries felt the impact of these changes, but most especially healthcare. What trends are shaping healthcare compensation today, and how will it impact your future?

Trends Affecting Healthcare Compensation in 2021
Healthcare Digital Transformation

Telemedicine was the big story in 2020. While the technology has been around for decades, the pandemic pushed these tools to the forefront of care delivery. In 2020, many employees shifted to remote positions, and this included healthcare. We faced changing health and safety protocols and had to retrain staff to deliver care virtually. Entire support teams went remote in large health systems and many departments such as marketing, coding, credentialing, and billing, may stay remote or partially remote in the years to come.

New Political Administration

The new federal administration, elected in 2020, signaled a few changes to federal policy in the healthcare space. Namely:

  • Maintenance or expansion of the Affordable Care Act.
  • A possible increase in policies surrounding paid family and medical leave.
  • The federal minimum wage could increase.

As healthcare organizations assess their new and revised compensation strategies post-COVID, it would be wise to review how these potential changes to benefits affect employees.

How have these trends affected compensation?

We know that healthcare organizations have been under competitive pressure to increase salaries. This includes the FQHC community. However, the added pressure and expenses of the COVID pandemic may trend salaries in the opposite direction—at least for a time. Given that health system and medical practice revenues declined when elective procedures were postponed, this has an effect on compensation structures tied to bonus and incentive programs.

With that said, the push toward long-term adoption of remote work can become an incentive to consider. Look for healthcare organizations to continue to offer flex time as well as increasing their emphasis on wellness and taking better care of their valuable front-line workers.

In the FQHC world, compensation packages are typically coupled with robust benefits, but there is often variance related to geographical or other challenges unique to the FQHC community. UHC Solutions works with community health professionals to find the next role that’s right for them. Contact us today to get your job search started.

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