Medical marketplace trends: Hospitals, doctors explore strategies that could alter the health care delivery system

Jan 24 2012

The New York Times reports that hospitals are competing for rich patients from all over the world. The Boston Globe reports on a strategy catching on in Massachusetts. And CNN notes that physicians are increasingly looking to the government for loans.

The New York Times: Chefs, Butlers, Marble Baths: Hospitals Vie For The Affluent
Pampering and décor to rival a grand hotel, if not a Downton Abbey, have long been the hallmark of such "amenities units," often hidden behind closed doors at New York's premier hospitals. But the phenomenon is escalating here and around the country, health care design specialists say, part of an international competition for wealthy patients willing to pay extra, even as the federal government cuts back hospital reimbursement in pursuit of a more universal and affordable American medical system (Bernstein, 1/22).

The Boston Globe: A Doctor To Watch Over You 
[Dr. Richard] Dupee is an early adopter of a new strategy for providing medical care that is expected to expand rapidly throughout Massachusetts ... nearly everyone with health insurance will be required to choose a primary care provider; insurers are considering assigning providers to people who don't make a choice. Residents who have primary care doctors can anticipate hearing from them and their staffs more often, as they focus on bringing patients into the office for preventive care (Kowalczyk, 1/23). 

CNN Money: Doctors Living On Loans
From 2000 to 2011, Small Business Administration loans to physicians' offices, including private practice doctors and mental health specialists, ballooned to $675 million from less than $60 million. "The fact that SBA loans have jumped this much is eye-opening," said Tom Blue, executive director of the American Academy of Private Physicians. "It definitely speaks to the story that doctors are struggling" (Kavilanz, 1/20).