The future of managed care: integration of financing, risk management, and delivery

The most significant transformation of health-care delivery and the health insurance industry is under way in the United States. It will change forever, and for the better, the way the delivery and financing of our nation's health-care is structured. We are witnessing the industrialization and consolidation of what was once a fragmented cottage industry. The new system--we call it wave III--will result in the re-establishment of the physician/providers as the key decision makers in our health-care system of the future. In this next phase of change, organized groups of physicians and hospitals will replace the current HMO insurance structure. This Third Wave will witness the integration of technology, managerial skills, marketing, sales, and negotiating acumen that were previously in the domain of health insurance companies (HMOs) into a delivery system where physicians and hospitals become partners focusing their coordinated efforts in managing health-care and the associated premiums.