For many in healthcare, 2012 will be a pivotal year — with issues ranging from the presidential election the Supreme Court decision over the healthcare law — and The Camden Group (pdf), a healthcare business advisory firm, named six of the biggest trends healthcare professionals can expect to see this year.
1. Hospital CEOs will focus on cost-cutting, volume and hospital-physician alignment. The Camden Group projects that hospitals must cut operating costs by 10 to 20 percent in the next three to five years in order to survive. Physicians will also look to hospital employment as a stable option in an unstable environment, and co-management agreements will also increase.
2. The stagnant economy and high unemployment rate will restrict growth but not costs. High-deducible health plans and deferred treatments will continue to be prevalent, and hospitals will still have to deal with flat Medicaid and Medicare payments and rising wage, benefit, supply and drug costs, according to the release.
3. New care models and health IT will demand attention and capital. Patient-centered medical homes, bundled payments, post-acute care management, meaningful use, ICD-10 and several other care innovations and health IT issues are certain to be at the forefront of any healthcare organization's 2012 initiatives, if they weren't already.
4. Access to capital will be paramount. Not-for-profits will continue to see tough access to capital, while for-profit entities and private equity companies will leverage their access to capital to expand further within healthcare. Health insurers will also play a key role, as their large cash reserves have already allowed them to acquire managed care companies and physician provider groups.
5. Weak hospitals and medical groups will have to merge or fold. The healthcare market will continue to consolidate in favor of the dominating health systems. The Camden Group estimates that with healthcare reform, as many as one of every 20 acute-care hospitals could close by 2020.
6. C-suites will experience high turnover. Because of the plethora of healthcare challenges executives will have to face, there may be many new faces at the helm of several healthcare organizations, according to the release.
1. Hospital CEOs will focus on cost-cutting, volume and hospital-physician alignment. The Camden Group projects that hospitals must cut operating costs by 10 to 20 percent in the next three to five years in order to survive. Physicians will also look to hospital employment as a stable option in an unstable environment, and co-management agreements will also increase.
2. The stagnant economy and high unemployment rate will restrict growth but not costs. High-deducible health plans and deferred treatments will continue to be prevalent, and hospitals will still have to deal with flat Medicaid and Medicare payments and rising wage, benefit, supply and drug costs, according to the release.
3. New care models and health IT will demand attention and capital. Patient-centered medical homes, bundled payments, post-acute care management, meaningful use, ICD-10 and several other care innovations and health IT issues are certain to be at the forefront of any healthcare organization's 2012 initiatives, if they weren't already.
4. Access to capital will be paramount. Not-for-profits will continue to see tough access to capital, while for-profit entities and private equity companies will leverage their access to capital to expand further within healthcare. Health insurers will also play a key role, as their large cash reserves have already allowed them to acquire managed care companies and physician provider groups.
5. Weak hospitals and medical groups will have to merge or fold. The healthcare market will continue to consolidate in favor of the dominating health systems. The Camden Group estimates that with healthcare reform, as many as one of every 20 acute-care hospitals could close by 2020.
6. C-suites will experience high turnover. Because of the plethora of healthcare challenges executives will have to face, there may be many new faces at the helm of several healthcare organizations, according to the release.
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