The Exec: SSM Health Chief Clinical Officer Cautiously Optimistic About 2025

Changes in reimbursement will have a pivotal impact on value-based care and overall health in the country, this chief clinical officer says.

Stephanie Duggan, MD, became chief clinical officer of SSM Health in November 2023.

Prior to joining SSM, she was president and CEO of Ascension Michigan for five years. Her leadership experience includes serving as CMO of Ascension Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola, Florida.

Here are Duggan’s five predictions for clinical care in 2025.

1. The future of value-based care will remain uncertain

Whether value-based care makes significant advancements this year is largely in the hands of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), according to Duggan.

"So much of our business is based on CMS requirements and CMS payments. Many of our insurers will follow what CMS does," Duggan says. "With our commitment to value-based care at SSM, I am hopeful that we will get more federal support for leaning into value-based care."

2. Room for improvement in complex care

This year could be an inflection point in the care of complex patients, Duggan explains.

"If we are going to be willing to talk about complexities and multiple co-morbid conditions as being a group of diseases that we want to get to root causes and bend the health curve, 2025 is going to be an exciting time," Duggan says. "The challenge is that nothing happens quickly."

Stephanie Duggan, MD, is chief clinical officer of SSM Health. Photo courtesy of SSM Health.

3. Cautious optimism about clinical care

The United States has a strong healthcare system in terms of treating people when they are ill, but the country needs to turn a corner this year when it comes to social determinants of health and preventative care, according to Duggan.

"We have the best rescue healthcare system in the world," Duggan says. "Our challenge is to figure out how we continue to care for everyone in this country so that the social determinants of health and Zip codes do not determine the type of healthcare that one is provided. Whether it is rural, whether it is inner city, we need to find a way to help people achieve their best health."

Changes in reimbursement this year could improve the overall health of the U.S. population, Duggan explains.

"We will see some changes in reimbursement," Duggan says, "and there will be a lot of interest in bending the healthcare curve to keep people healthy and well rather than just rescuing them when they are acutely ill."

4. No short-term fix for physician shortage

While the pipeline for new physicians is likely to improve this year, physician shortages will remain a challenge, according to Duggan.

"I predict that the applications to medical school will continue to rise," Duggan says. "There is a lot of interest in young people trying to get into medical school, but we will still see a shortage of physicians."

5. Addressing work-life balance for physicians

In 2025, technology needs to play a significant role in improving the work-life balance of physicians, Duggan explains.

"The work-life balance for physicians, especially since the coronavirus pandemic, has changed the expectations for how much time clinicians will work," Duggan says. "We will have to see some innovation, whether it is AI being more supportive of physicians or in telehealth."