Money—how much and how quickly insurers will pay, operating costs, the threat of competition—remains the biggest source of anxiety for healthcare executives.
That's according to an annual survey by the American College of Healthcare Executives that, perhaps unsurprisingly, once again ranked financial challenges at the top of the list of worrisome issues.
Of the financial challenges that concern the roughly 390 surveyed executives, it was public payers that topped the list. Respondents—who could select more than one answer from a list that included financial strains such as bad debt, flagging demand from patients, competition and rising expenses—ranked cuts to government funding as the most problematic (85% of respondents listed this as a concern). The amount and timeliness of Medicare and Medicaid payments ranked second and third, respectively.
Healthcare reform landed at No. 2 on the overall list of worries among the 388 executives who responded to the survey.
Specific challenges attributed to reform include reduced operating costs (identified by 72% of respondents as an issue); efforts to align incentives for insurers and healthcare providers (66%); and the movement toward payment for value (60%).
Ranking last on the list of challenges was accountable care organizations, coming in behind government mandates, patient safety and quality, care for the uninsured, patient satisfaction, relationships with physicians, population health management, technology, and workforce shortages.
Follow Melanie Evans on Twitter: @MHmevans
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