Primary care is at a tipping point, according to HIT Consultant. In the past, primary care delivery has been dictated by changes in payor-led reimbursement models. Examples include healthcare maintenance organizations (HMOs) of the 90s and more recent risk-sharing, value-based care initiatives. This time other forces are also at play, including:
- Nontraditional market entrants
- Physician shortages exacerbated by industry-wide burnout
- Consumer expectations
Health systems will be forced to evolve their primary care strategies. Membership model medicine must be a key component of that evolution.
According to a recent report by Bain & Co, a consultancy, nontraditional players are expected to own a third of the primary care market by 2030. These nontraditional participants include retailers, payor-owned providers, advanced primary care disruptors, and concierge providers.
The market is well on its trajectory toward this new reality: UnitedHealth/Optum employs over 70,000 physicians, making it the largest employer of physicians in the U.S. Amazon is also making moves to dominate physician markets, buying out primary care practice One Medical. The acquisition aims to scale Amazon’s technology platform and consumer reach with One Medical’s 150+ primary care locations.
Other retail giants like CVS, Walgreens, and Walmart, are inching into comprehensive primary care, attracting customers to retail clinics through ease of connectivity and convenience. Read more.
