Trends in the Affordable Care Act

With the final implementation of the Affordable Care Act we should expect to see more trends in health care practices in the coming months.  Although I don’t claim to be able to see into the future or have inside information as to what these trends will be, here are 3 trends that we can expect to see more.

Networking:  In order for medical practices to stay in business they will need to be part of an Accountable Care Organization (ACO). An ACO is a group of health care providers who come together voluntarily to give coordinated high quality care to their patients.  This is to ensure the patient receives “the right care at the right time”, while avoiding unnecessary duplication of services.

Outsourcing:  With the ever changing ways of reimbursement for services, expect to see providers outsource their billing and collection practices to companies who specialize and are up to date with the latest changes.

Cash only:  Expect to see some healthcare providers abandon the insurance system all together and only accept cash for services.  Not only will the provider decrease their overhead expenses by not employing people to navigate through the red tape of the authorization and billing process, they will be able to spend more time with their patients since they will not need to see as many patients to cover the higher overhead costs.