This PwC Health Research Institute (HRI) report looks at the projected increase in the cost of medical services for 2014. Read how medical cost trends affect your business.
For 2014, PwC's Health Research Institute (HRI) projects a medical cost trend of 6.5%.
Defying historical patterns—and placing added tension on the health industry—medical inflation in 2014 will dip even lower than in 2013. Aggressive and creative steps by employers, new venues and models for delivering care, and elements of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) are expected to exert continued downward pressure on the health sector
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Healthcare organizations, hurt by a squeeze on reimbursements and what might best be described as a recession “hangover,” have spent the past few years adapting to more modest growth rates. The industry will continue those efforts in 2014, including pushing care to locations and personnel that cost less...
Via rob halkes
It is not just in the US that health system suffer from rising costs. All over the world (desperate) attempts are being made to save costs. However from political perspectives these can often only be based on direct savings. "Save as savings can be" seems to be the catchcry, instead of looking for sensible reduction of investements (not just budget). At least an experimental set up for finding balances between rearrangements of medical, patient and financing factors might create better results (with less costs).