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June 1, 2017

2017 Medical Forecast

Cost: "The need to reduce cost, while improving outcome is paramount. The panel discussed US spending on healthcare which is equal to 18% of our GDP. US spending is the highest among industrialized nations by a wide margin and yet outcomes are mediocre. Process improvement, economies of scale, mobile technology, electronic medical records and smart real estate solutions will all need to be part of the solution."

Patient Access: "Access to care is critical to delivering preventative care and treating conditions before they become chronic. Dr. Nduati shared a story about a patient who lived 30-minutes from the clinic by car, but nearly 5-hours by public bus. Patients will not seek primary or preventative care when it takes them a whole day to see their physician. Those folks will end up in the Emergency Department where the cost of treatment is the highest. Healthcare providers will need to figure out a distributive network of care using physical location and virtual visits - payors will need to figure out a way to reimburse for these services."

Physician Shortage: "With a wave of older physicians reaching retirement and the amount of time physicians spend on administrative tasks (estimated at 40%) there are not enough physicians to meet the demand. Some solutions involve; care being delivered at the right level of licensure, reduction in administrative tasks, extending retirement and accrediting more schools."