Homecoming for the Heroes:
Celebrating Team USA and the Healthcare Teams that support them.
The torches are extinguished in Milano Cortina, the closing ceremonies are a memory, and Team USA has landed back on home soil.
While medals are being polished and “glory on the ice” smiles, teeth, cheers, and beers are going viral, we at RCR|HUB want to add to an additional standing ovation.
This one is for the Winter Strongholds, the hospitals, clinics, and Revenue Cycle teams that were the unseen during the 2026 Winter Games.
The Champions of Care: Winter Strongholds for Team USA
As we celebrated every medal and each athlete that stepped on a podium, several of our healthcare systems delivered precision care that made those victories possible. They are part of, or closely affiliated with, the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Medical Network [USOPC Medical Network], which integrates national and regional centers to support Team USA athletes.
The Steadman Clinic & SPRI (Vail, CO)
The Steadman Clinic is a high-performance orthopedic and sports medicine facility serving Olympic and elite athletes. In partnership with the Steadman Philippon Research Institute, it aims to transform what could be season-ending injuries into “back on snow” moments.
UCHealth (Colorado)
The hospitals and over 100 clinics in southern Colorado operated by UCHealth were recognized by the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee as a National Medical Center for athletes living and training in Colorado Springs, “Olympic City USA” [USOPC-UCHealth partnership]; [UCHealth announcement]. Their Level I trauma services and sports medicine expertise make them a year-round resource for winter and multi-sport athletes.
UF Health (University of Florida Health)
UF Health was chosen to be part of the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Medical Network, becoming the first member in the southeastern U.S. and one of a few National Medical Centers in the country to support Team USA [UF Health selected to join network]. Their commitment to continue providing care to Team USA athletes through 2028 reflects their long-term relationship with elite sports medicine [UF Health to continue caring for Team USA]. UF’s feature, “[Health care for champions],” provides a great behind-the-scenes look.
Cedars-Sinai (Los Angeles, CA)
Cedars-Sinai is listed in the USOPC Medical Network as a National Medical Center and has also been designated as an official medical provider in preparation for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Los Angeles [Cedars-Sinai tapped as official provider for 2028 Olympics]. Their sports medicine and specialty offerings help support both current and future Olympians.
University of Utah Health (Salt Lake City, UT)
University of Utah Health is a Regional Adirondack Health, also listed as a Regional Medical Center within the USOPC Medical Network, and provides sliding sports such as bobsled, luge, and skeleton racing around Lake Placid [USOPC Medical Network]. It symbolizes the eastern anchor of Team USA’s winter sports heritage.
These “Winter Strongholds” together form a distributed high-performance health system for America’s best on snow and ice.
Who Pays? How Insurance Works for Olympians
A natural question follows: how is all of this care actually covered? The answer depends heavily on the athlete and their status.
1. Support from the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic System
Athletes on Team USA get access to:
Partner hospitals and clinics in the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Medical Network [USOPC Medical Network]
- Training center care at facilities such as the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Center in Colorado Springs
- Event-specific care at the Olympic Village polyclinic during the Games
However:
- The USOPC is not a full private health insurer; its support is limited to training and competition-related needs.
- Benefits can vary by tier, national team, development teams, and other tiers may get different levels of support.
2. Personal Health Insurance Still Matters
Outside of this structure, Olympians use:
- Employer-provided plans
- ACA marketplace plans
- Medicaid for lower-income athletes
- Coverage through a spouse or parent
Only a few athletes in high-paying sports have sponsorship or league-provided resources that make healthcare costs nearly irrelevant.
3. Stipends, Benefits, and Mental Health Support
National sport governing bodies and Olympic organizations can offer:
- Training stipends and performance rewards on a monthly basis
- Limited medical expense reimbursement
- Mental health and wellness support
These benefits are real but not equal, and they do not equate to comprehensive lifetime coverage.
4. Care During the Games vs. Between the Games
During the Games, the Olympic Village polyclinic provides free, high-quality care: sports medicine, imaging, lab, dental, ophthalmology, PT, and more. Descriptions of care during previous Games describe the Olympic Village polyclinic as a fully staffed, multidisciplinary medical center that supports athletes and Olympic officials throughout the competition [example: organizing Olympic medical services]; [imaging and injury evaluation at the Olympics].
Between Games, athletes face the same challenges of coverage as any other patient, often with more complex injuries and less guarantee of support.
The “Unseen Marathon: Revenue Cycle Excellence After the Games
The closing ceremony may signal the end of the competition, but for RCM teams, the final heat is only just beginning.
Every international surgery, advanced scan, and post-Games rehab session contributes to a complex revenue cycle that must span borders, payers, and systems.
RCM “gold medalists” are currently working through:
Multi-payer coordination
Integrating athlete-specific or Olympic-related coverage with personal commercial insurance, Medicaid, or national governing body policies.
Global claim integrity
Validating that care provided abroad is properly documented and coded for reimbursement back home, with correct modifiers, place-of-service information, and compliance parameters.
Transitions of care
Connecting the handoff from an event-based or polyclinic setting back to the athlete’s home-base primary care, specialists, and rehab teams, and sometimes even across state lines or international borders.
This is where the unsung heroes of RCM, registrars, coders, CDI specialists, billers, denial teams, and revenue integrity analysts turn complexity into sustainability.
We Celebrate You
This month, we speak of impact.
- To the registrar who gets an athlete properly registered, so coverage works the first time.
- To the coder who breaks down a complex multi-procedure case into clean claims.
- To the denial-fighter who prevents a world-class surgery from becoming an unpaid story.
- To the analyst who identifies patterns and preserves future access to advanced imaging and procedures for elite athletes and patients alike.
You are the reason our athletes can focus on the podium instead of the bill.
You are the financial protectors of the Olympic dream.
As Team USA returns home from Milano Cortina, the RCR|HUB team is sending a warm, winter‑themed standing ovation to our athletes and to the healthcare professionals in clinics and hospitals who quietly power the teams behind our team.
Welcome home, Team USA.
And to our RCM colleagues in these Winter Strongholds: your work is medal-worthy.
* Hey, Jack Hughes, four or five teeth? That’s dedication. Your dentist just qualified for Team USA. We love you and your team! Go USA!