Healthcare Business Models Clash with Reforms

Healthcare executives responding to a survey say the nation will see major changes in the way healthcare is delivered and paid for in the next five years as providers and payers struggle to do more with less.

Most of those executives, however, also believe that the fee-for-service-based business models they're using now will be at least "somewhat sustainable" or fare even better in the face of new challenges brought on by healthcare reform.

KPMG LLP consultants surveyed more than 200 senior leaders in healthcare and found that 73% of health systems executives, 81% of health plan executives, and 79% of drug makers said their business models were somewhat sustainable or better over the next five years.

Brad Benton, national account and advisory leader for KPMG Healthcare, says that despite the acknowledgement that huge changes are underway, a significant number of executives may be falling back on old reliable models in the face of uncertainty.