The American Health Care Industry Faces More Challenges than Ever, 10-27-2006

Particularly in the U.S., continuous increases in the cost of health care, growing at rates far exceeding the rate of inflation in general, are hammering health consumers and payors of all types. Managed care providers continue to struggle to contain costs. Meanwhile, employers are hit hard by vast increases in the cost of providing coverage to employees and retirees. A number of factors contribute to these challenges, all of which are contained in a recent report by Plunkett Research, Ltd., but only a selection of which are represented here:

1. While the advent of managed care appeared to tame health care cost inflation during the early-and mid-1990s, costs have been rising very rapidly since then.
2. The number of Americans who are underinsured or are without any type of insurance coverage at all remains staggering at more than 42 million.
3. The U.S. population is aging rapidly. At the same time, the life expectancy of seniors is extending. Senior citizens will place a significant strain on the health care system in coming years. America's 78 million Baby Boomers begin turning 65 in 2011.
4. Physicians, other care providers, pharmaceutical manufacturers and insurers face daunting pressure from litigation and potential claims regarding malpractice and denial of care. Malpractice insurance costs are out of control. Some lawsuit reform legislation has begun, but much more reform is needed.
5. Few Americans focus on leading healthy lifestyles that would prevent disease and cut both the amount and the cost of medical care. A 2005 study led by researchers at Michigan State University estimated that 76% of Americans do not smoke, but only 40.1% maintain a healthy weight and only 22.2% exercise for at least 30 minutes, five times per week. Likewise, only 23.3% were found to eat the recommended amount of daily fruit and vegetable servings.

To find out more about these exciting trends and more, check out Plunkett's Health Care Industry Almanac 2007, just released, or go to www.plunkettresearch.com and sign up for a subscription to Plunkett's completely up-to-date online database!

About Plunkett Research, Ltd.

Plunkett Research, Ltd. is a leading publisher of complete business research and analysis resources, designed to enable professionals in marketing, research and finance to access complete trends analysis, statistics, technology analysis and financial analysis of the world's most exciting industries. For more information, visit www.plunkettresearch.com, or call 713.932.0000.