Two Emerging Medical Business Models

[By Dr. David Edward Marcinko; MBA, CMP™]

Last year, nurse-executive Hope Hetico; RN, MHA from www.MedicalBusinessAdvisors.com and I wrote a chapter on physician compensation for the book Practicing Medicine in the 21st Century. The book was edited by David B. Nash; MD, MBA of Jefferson Medical College, in Philadelphia. One of us [DEM] attended medical school at Temple University, so David clearly does not hold a grudge against us. Nevertheless, in the publication, we identified these two emerging trends that have grown even stronger with the passage of time:

Values Based Health Insurance Model

According to Mark Fendrick, MD and Michael E. Chernew, PhD, instead of the one size fits all approach of traditional health insurance, a “clinically-sensitive” cost-sharing system that supports co-payments related to evidence-based value for targeted patients seems plausible.

In this model, out-of-pocket costs are based on price and a cost/quality tradeoff in clinical circumstances: low co-payments for interventions of highest value, and higher co-payments for interventions with little proven health benefit. Smarter benefit packages are designed to combine disease management with cost sharing to address spending growth.

Medical Tourism and the Global Healthcare Model

American businesses are extending their cost-cutting initiatives to include offshore employee medical benefits, and facilities like the Bumrungrad Hospital in Bangkok Thailand (cosmetic surgery), and the Apollo Hospital in New Delhi India (cardiac and orthopedic surgery) which are premier examples for surgical care. Both are internationally recognized institutions that resemble five-star hotels equipped with the latest medical technology. Countries such as Finland, England and Canada are also catering to the English-speaking crowd, while dentistry is especially popular in Mexico and Costa Rica.

Although this is still considered “medical tourism,” Mercer Health and Benefits was recently retained by three Fortune 500 companies interested in contracting with offshore hospitals and JCAHO has accredited 88 foreign hospitals through a joint international commission. To be sure, when India can discount costs up to 80%, the effects on domestic hospital reimbursement and physician compensation may be assumed to increase downward compensation pressures.

Assessment

Another commentator on this topic is hospitalist Robert Wachter, MD; a blogger at Wachter’s World.

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OUR OTHER PRINT BOOKS AND RELATED INFORMATION SOURCES:

• PRACTICES: www.BusinessofMedicalPractice.com
• HOSPITALS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781466558731
• CLINICS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781439879900
• ADVISORS: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org
• FINANCE: Financial Planning for Physicians and Advisors
• INSURANCE: Risk Management and Insurance Strategies for Physicians and Advisors
• Dictionary of Health Economics and Finance
• Dictionary of Health Information Technology and Security
• Dictionary of Health Insurance and Managed Care

Filed under: Book Reviews, Career Development, Health Economics, Health Insurance, Healthcare Finance, Managed Care, Media Mentions and PR, Op-Editorials, Practice Management | Tagged: David Nash, Hetico, Marcinko, Mark Fendrick, medical tourism, Robert M. Wachter |