Healthcare Data Analytics Blog

Eliminating inefficient and unnecessary medical services improves overall healthcare efficiency while reducing costs. In 2009, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) identified $750 billion of wasted spending, with unnecessary services accounting for $210 billion. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that 30% of medical care in the U.S. is unnecessary care. (Source: Institute of Medicine article … Health Data Analytics for Identifying Wasteful Services

The American Healthcare system is experiencing rapid change, largely driven by the recognition by both public and private payers that the trajectory of healthcare spending growth must be slowed. Despite the recent slowdown in healthcare spending growth, which many attribute to the recession, efforts to transform benefit design and payment systems are proceeding rapidly. For … Utilization Health Waste in the US Healthcare Marketplace

Most people working in healthcare know that the cost for the same service can vary significantly by setting (e.g. office based vs hospital) and by provider within a setting. The example below illustrates this for a simple surgery with the price doubling in the Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) setting and being almost 5 times as … Site of Service Savings Opportunities

This article was originally published in Employee Benefit News. It was written by both David Cusick and Brian Anderson. When seeking ways to keep expenses under control, health care plan sponsors may overlook the value of claims auditing. Auditing fees may not be inconsequential, but the fact is that an accurate audit including both pharmacy … Do Not Overlook the Value of Claims Auditing

Hospitals have historically relied on surgeries contributing to their top service lines and providing a significant source of revenue generation for hospitals and surgeons. This has, in part, led to the overutilization of surgeries. In the area of spinal surgeries, as noted in the Modern Healthcare article from March 24, 2014, the mounting research evidence … Too Many Spinal Surgeries?