Federal Healthcare Regulation Pressures

Government regulation is changing healthcare in some very substantial ways as the ongoing debate related to healthcare policy moves toward the regulatory phase. New laws and rules are challenging healthcare organizations to be more innovative and responsive to consumers. Federal healthcare regulation programs like Medicare and Medicaid are ratcheting down payments with an increasing reliance upon personal, out-of-pocket payments by consumers, which is forcing the industry to “do more for less.” Like other industries who have crossed this bridge before us—airlines, utilities, and telecommunications—the healthcare industry is now facing unyielding cost pressures as a result of healthcare laws and regulation. At the same time, it is not simply a matter of cost.  The quality and service levels are also increasingly important in a more consumer-focused environment. 

Organizations must respond to these healthcare regulation pressures and look for ways to offer more balanced, improved and available patient care under the backdrop of tightening healthcare regulations. Healthcare leaders must engage in continuous environmental scanning to stay on top of the many changes occurring in the environment.