Top health industry issues of 2016

In 2016, millions or American consumers will have their first video consults; be prescribed their first health apps and use their smartphones as diagnostic tools for the first time. 2016 also will be the year that many Americans, faced with higher deductibles, manage medical expenses with new tools and services rolled out by their insurance companies, healthcare providers, banks and other new entrants.
This will be the year that, shift by shift, visit by visit, nurses doctors and other clinicians learn to work in new ways, incorporation insights gleaned from data analysis into their treatment plan.
PwC’s Health Research Institute’s annual Top health industry issues report highlights the forces that are expected to have the most impact on the industry in the coming year, with a glance back at key trends from the past decade.

Introduction

2016 will be a year of firsts for healthcare consumers, organizations and new entrants as innovative tools and services enter the New Health Economy. HRI’s annual “Top health industry issues” report highlights the forces that are expected to have the most impact on the industry in the coming year, with a glance back at key trends from the past decade.

1. 2016 is the year of merger mania
High-profile mergers and acquisitions likely will continue in 2016, with regulators taking center stage in the debate over how consolidation impacts consumers.

2. Goldilocks comes to drug prices
Reminiscent of the proverbial story of Goldilocks, the search is on for a drug pricing formula that is “just right.”

3. Care in the palm of your hand Thanks to technology and shifts in financial incentives, care will begin to move into the palms of consumers’ hands, providing care anywhere, anytime.

4. Cybersecurity concerns come to medical technology
As security breaches become more common and costly, attention shifts to buttressing the security of medical devices.

5. The new money managers
Shouldering higher deductibles, consumers seek help managing their health spending with fresh tools and services developed by players new and old.

6. Behavioral healthcare: no longer on the backburner Employers and healthcare organizations eye behavioral healthcare as key to keeping costs down, productivity up and consumers healthy.

7. Care moves to the community
As payment shifts to value-based models, health systems will pursue lower-cost settings more aggressively than before while employing creative approaches to distributing care.

8. New databases improve patient care and consumer health
New databases and database tools will allow industry players to analyze data from many sources in novel ways, finally unlocking insights embedded in the reams of information being collected about health consumers.

9. Enter the biosimilars
Biosimilars, lower-cost substitutes for branded biologic drugs, are expected to begin to offer some counterweight to rising drug prices in 2016, much as generic drugs did 30 years ago.

10. The medical cost mystery
In the journey to value-based care, health systems dig in to calculate the true cost of services, an exercise that also can uncover opportunities to become more efficient and improve care.

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