Healthcare having an Important Year in 2008

Healthcare may have its biggest year yet, according to PricewaterhouseCooper’s Health Research Institute. Part of the excitement is related to the upcoming presidential election. Other changes include an adjustment to the Medicare payment system. "The future strategies of hospitals, commercial insurers, pharmaceutical companies and life sciences firms will be influenced by big changes ahead in government policies, market pressures and global trends," said R. Carter Pate, Global and U.S. health industries and government services leader. "With healthcare costs taking a bigger bite out of the assets of individuals, businesses and the U.S. economy, there is a demand for greater accountability from the health industries and a demonstration of the value they create."

Here are some of the expected changes: 1) Retirees will play a greater role in funding their healthcare coverage. Many executives believe that employees should no long fund the healthcare of the retired person. 2) The new Medicare payment system will create hospitals who win and hospitals who lose. Two hundred more diagnosis codes have been added that recognize the severity of illness among hospitalized patients. 3) Retail health clinics will challenge primary care models. There will be a number of retail clinics in discount chain stores and other stores throughout the US to handle minor illnesses. It’s possible that this could threaten the primary healthcare model. 4) Individual health insurance could become more prominent. There could be tax incentives for individually insured individuals and it should reduce the number of uninsured. 5) There could be an increased merger and acquisition activity between pharmaceutical companies and life sciences companies. 6) There could be an increased role of Asia in the pharmaceutical industry. This could increase issues of safety in pharmaceuticals. 7) The FDA is poised to tighten drug and medical device safety standards. 8) The IRS seeks a full accounting of hospital community benefits. They want the hospital to submit a full accounting of the benefits they provide to the community.

"The government and the public have high expectations that the health industries will deliver safe care and safe drugs and will meet consumer and patient demands for innovative products and services," said Dr. David Chin, partner and leader of PwC's Health Research Institute. "Now there is some real accountability behind many of these expectations."