Experts Share What's to Come in Home Care and Hospice - Part 5

In the previous part of this series, we heard from the managing director of The Braff Group, Mark Kulik. Kulik gave great insight to honor the theme of the series: what trends and changes could affect the home health and hospice industry in the next one, three and five years?

Next, we are pleased hear from the president of the Remington Health Strategy Group and publisher of the Remington Report, Lisa Remington. With nearly 30 years of experience in her leadership position alone, Remington offers key insight and knowledge into what’s to come in this ever-changing industry.

Developing 1 to 5-year strategic plans for home health organizations can be accomplished by assessing clear trends that are driving a more predictable future in healthcare and developing a plan to keep ahead of evolving trends that impact the future.  How can your organization strategically plan based on predictability? How can your organization respond effectively with flexible and agility to move quickly based on evolving trends? Important to strategic plans is an internal and external focus.

Predictable Future. The roadmap transforming the healthcare delivery system takes shape with three key trends affecting home health’s future.

1. Payment reform transitions to support value-based care models. The healthcare infrastructure and payment reform are accelerating value-based models from fee-for-service. Provider and payor readiness for value-based care is across the industry. Strategic Plan: How is your organization responding/preparing to the changing landscape of value-based care? How will your organization effectively respond to greater risk-sharing models?

2. Payors and Medicare Advantage Plans: Over the next few years, expect to hear more announcements about expanded supplemental benefits under Medicare Advantage Plans. CMS’s CMMI is testing hospice benefits, telehealth, and wellness and health care planning. This is driven by The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018. Strategic Plan: How is your organization expanding value and new models of care to contract with payors? How is your organization increasing value for the health plans and its members? Do you know your cost per patient?

3. Technology. The “ecosystem” of value-based care is firming-up into four key areas. Behavioral health, social determinants, population health and managing the chronic care population. Technology investments in clinical support systems, predictive analysis, artificial intelligence, EHRs, data analytics, remote patient monitoring, digital technology and software solutions are important to home care’s future sustainability. Strategic Plan: Has your organization identified key technology investments? What leading-edge technologies for population health, chronic care management, care coordination, data management and analytics will competitively drive your organization internally and externally?

Strategic Planning: What Nine Challenges Are Ahead For Home Health Providers?

1. Workforce

2. Scalability

3. Shared-risk contracting

4. Market share and positioning

5. Performance improvement

6. A culture of accountability

7. Consolidation/mergers and acquisitions

8. PDGM

9. Value-based purchasing

The evolving market signal for all providers is the movement from “siloed” care management to integration across the continuum. This requires a relationship based on risk-sharing, clinical integration, technology, and an increase in preferred provider relationships. The healthcare industry’s common goals are for providers to partner on managing quality, cost, and outcomes.

Next time, Edo Banach, president and CEO of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization will share his thoughts regarding potential trends and changes the home health and hospice industry may see.