4 Keys to Navigating Healthcare Reform

PricewaterhouseCoopers' Health Research Institute shares four keys to navigating the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in a new report (pdf).

President Barack Obama's reelection makes the PPACA more likely to stay in place, which means hospitals and health systems will have to shift into high gear to change processes to meet new healthcare demands.

PwC's report, "Health reform re-elected: ACA implementation in tough fiscal times," provides four principles healthcare organizations should follow to be successful under healthcare reform:

1. Focus on the customer. Insight into hospitals' patient populations can help them manage health risks and provide more targeted care.

2. Shared risk leads to shared savings. In new healthcare models, hospitals and physicians assume more financial risk with the possibility of recouping some of the savings. These models include accountable care organizations, which receive a per-person fee to treat patients; bundled payments, in which providers receive a single global payment for a bundle of medical services; and innovative managed care contracting, in which providers, payors, employers and individuals each has "skin in the game."

3. Build scale. Stand-alone hospitals will need to build scale to spread the costs of building infrastructure such as a comprehensive delivery network and electronic medical records. "Even organizations with a strong financial position will have to think twice about going it alone and should consider opportunities to partner, merge, or be acquired to sustain investments and create a strong brand and consumer base," the report says.

4. Go digital, go mobile. Hospitals will need to share patient data at the point of care and integrate clinical, administrative, financial and patient self-reported data to manage patient populations.

More Articles on Healthcare Reform:

Speaker John Boehner Pushes for Full Repeal of Affordable Care Act
The 2012 Election: Hospital and Healthcare Leaders React

What 5 Hospital CEOs Expect After Today's Election

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