Healthcare News of Note: The top 5 reasons U.S. adults say the nation’s healthcare system fails to meet their needs

• Nearly three-quarters of adults say the U.S. healthcare system is not meeting their needs in some way, with the length of time to get an appointment the No. 1 reason.
• The top benefit of using remote patient monitoring during cancer care is to keep the care team up to date on symptoms in between appointments, according to providers and patients/caregivers.
• Fee-for-value arrangements will capture 15%-20% of market share from traditional fee-for-service primary care providers by 2030.

Over the past few weeks, I have found these industry news stories that should be of interest to healthcare finance professionals.    

1.  The top reason many Americans say the U.S. healthcare system isn’t meeting their needs is ‘it takes too long to get an appointment’

“Nearly three-quarters of U.S. adults (73%) say that the healthcare system is not meeting their needs” in some way, with the length of time to get an appointment the No. 1 reason, according to a recent report by The Harris Poll and the American Academy of Physician Associates (AAPA).

Reasons for dissatisfaction

The top five ways the U.S. healthcare system fails to meet the needs of its adult population, according to the survey of 2,519 people ages 18 and older, are:

1. Takes too long to get an appointment – 31%
2. Costs strain my/my family’s finances – 26%
3. Insurance doesn’t cover the cost of enough services – 23%
4. Healthcare system focus is on treating illness and injury, not preventive care and wellness – 19%
5. Quality of care in my community is not good – 14%

“While patients may be dissatisfied with the system at large, they are relatively more satisfied with their providers and the care they receive,” wrote the authors, noting that 53% of respondents grade their local healthcare above average and 63% grade the healthcare they received in the past 12 months above average, “while only 40% can say the same for the broader U.S. healthcare system.”

In fact, 26% of those surveyed would give the healthcare system a D or F grade, according to the report. Another 34% would give the system a C grade, 30% a B and 10% an A.

Additional HFMA insight

Related resources from HFMA that may provide additional insight on the topic include:

• “Future of consumer expectations,” part of HFMA’s Healthcare 2030 series.
• “Research: Cost Management in Healthcare,” a new report (download required) that was published by HFMA and the Institute of Management Accountants to identify opportunities and present actionable recommendations for helping healthcare organizations improve quality while lowering costs.  
• Healthcare News of Note blog: What healthcare sector innovations are consumers most excited about?

2. Survey: 4 main benefits of remote patient monitoring for people undergoing cancer care

Keeping the care team up to date on symptoms in between appointments is a main benefit of using remote patient monitoring (RPM) during cancer care, according to 52% of providers and 40% of patients/caregivers in a recent survey by the Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC).

Survey participants included 128 providers, 90 patients and 72 caregivers.

The other benefits of RPM during cancer care, according to the ACCC report, include:

• Alerts the care team if medical intervention is necessary – 43% of providers and 31% of patients/caregivers
• Improves patient outcomes – 41% of providers and 17% of patients/caregivers
• Reduces risk of ER visits and hospitalizations – 33% of providers and 19% of patients/caregivers

“RPM adoption is building momentum; most cancer programs and practices reported at least early planning for this technology,” wrote the report authors. “Patients and caregivers are also starting to embrace digital technologies to monitor symptoms.”

Some 40% of practices reported being at the “implementing/piloting” stage, 28% at the “considering/planning” stage and another 28% “not considering” RPM, according to the survey.

What is needed to boost RPM use?

“While substantial evidence exists supporting the benefits of RPM, additional evidence generation is needed related to implementation in a real-world setting,” wrote the authors.

Additional needs are:

• Strategies to improve equitable access
• Policies to support funding and sustainability
• Provider and patient education to increase awareness and engagement

3. Fee-for-value arrangements: What does the future hold?

The future of value-based arrangements is promising, according to a Bain and Company report, “Value-Based Care: Opportunities Expand,” in which the authors wrote: “The potential of value-based care models remains unrealized. … We expect the transition toward capitated and other risk-bearing reimbursement models to continue.”

The authors of the April 10 report also wrote: “Fee-for-value arrangements will capture 15%-20% market share” from traditional fee-for-service primary care providers by 2030, “creating strong macro tailwinds and supporting further investment in the space.”

High-level takeaways

A couple of the high-level takeaways from the report are:

Sustained macro trends continue to drive value-based care adoption across a spectrum of care models. For example, according to the authors, “Rising costs of care are putting pressure on stakeholders while key [value-based care] enablers have matured — including data availability, analytics, and care management models.”

While investment activity remains focused on primary care and Medicare Advantage, opportunities across other payer and specialty segments are expanding. For instance, the authors wrote, “Categories with more standardized and time bound interventions (such as orthopedics, cardiology, OB/GYN maternal care, and others) have witnessed growth in episode-based payment models over the past few years.”

HFMA resources on the topic

The Feb. 24 article, “4 reasons why now is the time to revisit value-based care,” a Kaufman Hall-sponsored piece.

HFMA bonus content

• Read original content from the Summer issue of hfm, including the cover story “Mayo Clinic CFO Dennis Dahlen preparing for his year as HFMA’s National Chair,” by Nick Hut, senior editor; and the Inside HFMA feature “Ann Jordan named HFMA’s new president and CEO.”
• Read the June 2 article, “Report quantifies the financial impact of certain health plan business practices on providers” by Nick Hut, HFMA senior editor.