IBM Reports on the Future of Healthcare
IBM released a new report that evaluated the state of the health care system and, in particular, the role of health insurance companies in the future. The report considers the current state of flux influencing the U.S. system. The report, “Healthcare 2015 and U.S. Health Plans: New Roles, New Competencies”, was issued in the middle of September. The company’s website includes a press release detailing the report as well as links to the complete version (pdf).
The report contends that the system must change because the current path is simply unsustainable. The primary factor contributing to an unwieldy system include cost; healthcare costs per capita in the U.S. are 2.3 times more expensive than in other industrialized nations. Moreover, costs are expected to almost double in the next ten years.
Additional concerns detail the quality of care generally delivered. Errors attributed to medication alone contribute $3.5 billion in costs to the system. This area represents an opportunity to reduce costs while simultaneously improving care. Additional considerations arise in light of a large population of uninsured and underinsured persons, which add to cost considerations.
In light of these findings, one of the primary recommendations in the report is that U.S. health insurers will need to reevaluate their role within the American healthcare system. In doing so, insurers need to determine the most critical competencies, moving forward, to ensure their own contributions and self-sustainability within the system.
These assertions are based on the premise that the system in the U.S. is changing and that it will continue to change in response to the rising costs to provide care, as well as improve the overall safety of patients and quality of care delivered.
The IBM report notes that such a massive system overhaul is a difficult endeavor. Factors that will inhibit progress include an inability to balance long term and short term perspectives, funding limitations, limited means for intercommunication, and expectations and norms of the American culture. In light of such, changes are expected to occur incrementally rather than a single massive overhaul.
The IBM team offers three means to commence modifications to the system. Transforming the value of healthcare, modifying the concept of consumer responsibility in their own care, and reshaping the delivery of healthcare.
The report was compiled by members of IBM Global Business Services and the IBM Institute for Business Value.
September 28, 2007 Related topics: General Management & Administration, Trends, Industry & Market