tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-414555827842946729.post2072972449414907999..comments2023-11-03T05:29:10.849-04:00Comments on Healthcare Technology News: Will More Insurers Control Health Care Costs Better?Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16546158824445218173noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-414555827842946729.post-78298879625246623292010-07-19T13:51:13.297-04:002010-07-19T13:51:13.297-04:00Dr. Reinhardt,
According to the interactive map p...Dr. Reinhardt,<br /><br />According to the interactive map prepared by the Center for American Progress, it will likely take both a massive amount of capital and many years to actually “fragment the buy side of the health care market even more than it already is.”<br /><br />See: http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2009/06/health_competition_map.html<br /><br />As you know, there are about 1,300 remaining private health insurance carriers in the U.S., but only 12 plans cover two-thirds of those with private health insurance and oligopolists rarely compete much for market share.<br /><br />See: http://www.forbes.com/2010/07/07/healthcare-reform-insurance-hospitals-contributors-merrill-matthews-obamacare.html<br /><br />The progressive concentration of the private employer group and individual health insurance markets over the last forty years has been mirrored by acute care hospital market concentration (with its 5,010 sellers), but the market for physicians (with its 991,066 sellers) is still very fragmented with about 85% of physicians still practicing solo or in groups of ten or less.<br /><br />See: http://statehealthfacts.org <br /><br />Additionally problematic for consumers and those advocates of consumer-centered, value-driven healthcare reform policies and increased competition on price and quality are the market-distorting effects of the Medicare and Medicaid monopsonies which will be further expanded with full implementation of the PPACA.<br /><br />Bob Coli, MDBob Coli, MDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14288071117919448030noreply@blogger.com