In a nod to Shakespeare we look back at 2014 to see what, we believe, 2015 holds for hospitals, healthcare systems, physicians and others with an interest in healthcare in the United States. Is past, prologue?
On the heels of 2010-2013, a period that saw more merger and acquisition activity among healthcare providers than before, this past year was characterized more by the rationalization and reorganization by hospitals and health systems of assets and business lines than it was by acquisitions, mergers or consolidations. The activity in 2014 appeared to be in response to the changing regulatory environment and, more importantly, to a morphing reimbursement landscape, which is changing from one more focused on the value of healthcare services provided than on volume of such services. Providers, in 2014, seemed to spend more time reallocating resources, forging alliances and aligning with physicians, investing in information technology infrastructure and developing relationships with payers or becoming payers themselves.
The original producer of this article is Becker’s Hospital Review, you can continue reading the article on their website.