Resources To Stay Informed
2008 AHIP Conference- What's New With Health Plans
We’re going to continue to experience some interesting times in our healthcare industry over the next year. Nobody can accurately predict what’s actually going to happen- but everyone agrees that something needs to be done. Our current system cannot sustain the way it operates today- it’s simply too expensive.
The AHIP (America’s Health Insurance Plans) annual conference is one of the best ways to get the current viewpoint and perspective of the industry from a health plan or payer point of view. This conference highlights the key areas of interest for health plans and also provides (through its massive exhibit hall) an overview of the technologies and innovations being marketed and introduced to the industry. There are some big names taking a more significant interest in the healthcare sector (Walgreen’s, Microsoft, Wal Mart) as well a growing number of new companies exploring niche areas. One thing was clear from the messages received from almost all keynotes and workshops- technology is going to play a significant role in any solution to our current system and that was further apparent by those in the exhibit hall. So we had better be ready.
The following are some of the highlights and “take-aways” from this years AHIP conference in San Francisco. We tried to provide an unbiased assessment of some of the messages, themes, and strategies from a pretty important participant of today’s healthcare system. Obviously, there are the opinions and approaches advocated by other stakeholders that will also need to be considered. This was made evident by the 1,000 individuals (primarily supported by unions) that were outside Moscone Center protesting the inequalities existing in the current system and advocating for dramatic health care reform and change. The differing perspectives of the two views (health plans and organized labor) were pretty noticeable and made it clear that any change is not going to be easy- we’re going to have some challenges ahead to make the changes that need to be made.
