QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER | FALL 2023 – #46
Are Millennials Turning Their Backs on Traditional Healthcare Delivery Models? By Joy Stephenson-Laws, Managing Partner One aspect of the traditional revenue model for most healthcare providers includes a strategy of maintaining patient loyalty while capturing new patients to replace the revenue lost through attrition. The goal is to provide financial growth that will keep pace or outpace the rate of operating cost increases. Many providers implement this strategy through a combination of marketing and operational activities that, with some tweaks here and there, have worked sufficiently well. And since it wasn’t “broken,” there was no compelling reason to “fix it.” But the days of “marketing as usual” are over, thanks to the generation known as “Millennials” taking the place of “Baby Boomers” as the largest population
of people in the United States. According the U.S. Census Bureau, there are now over 83 million Millennials, (those born between 1981 and 1996), versus some 75 million Baby Boomers. Another way to put it, Millennials now represent a quarter of the U.S. population. And given that the older Millennials are now well into their 30s, this means that they are not only making healthcare decisions for themselves but most likely for their parents and grandparents as well. So, what does this mean for healthcare providers? It means that to ensure financial stability and viability over the next few decades, providers need to know how to attract Millennials to their facilities and how to keep them loyal. And, for many providers, this is
far more easily said than done since Millennials are nothing like previous generations on how they view healthcare and how they consume it. Perhaps one of the most visible changes, and one that has far-reaching implications for the industry, is that Millennials are abandoning Primary Care Physicians (PCPs) and opting instead for alternate sources of healthcare. Many of these options would not have even been contemplated as viable a decade ago. A recent study by the Kaiser Family Foundation revealed that almost 45 percent of Millennials do not have a PCP (compared to only 18 percent of their parents’ generation). And, if you look at their grandparents, that number drops
even lower, to around 12 percent. Another study done by the Employee Benefit Research Institute had similar results with 33 percent of Millennials not having a PCP, compared to 15 percent for those age 50 to 64. While it may be tempting for hospitals to believe that by nature of their size, resources, and services they are immune to this “Millennial Affect,” they do so at their own financial risk. While Baby Boomers and previous generations accepted the status quo of the healthcare system, Millennials do not. In fact, many Millennials believe that healthcare in the United States today is inherently flawed. They tend to not fully trust the industry to do the right thing when it comes to their care, and they want to see changes that reflect their wants and needs. Millennials, who are familiar with instant gratification, also see healthcare as frustratingly inefficient and more like a stereotypical 20th Century-style assembly line. And given their desire for institutions to work for the common good, they are also skeptical of healthcare providers’ true motives. Many see providers as ‘profit making machines.’ Last, but certainly not least, Millennials depend (more than other generations) on a provider’s reputation and online reviews, for example, Yelp!, in making a decision on which provider to use for their healthcare needs.
What Millennials Want from Healthcare Providers Given that Millennials have never known a world without the Internet, on-demand digital content, social media and “Dr. Google,” it’s not surprising that their life experiences and technology have shaped their view of how they believe healthcare should work. Their model of healthcare offers: Instant Access and Convenience The idea of having to wait days, or even weeks, to see a doctor or other healthcare professionals is anathema to Millennials. They want wait times of less than 30 minutes and same-day appointments. And while some Millennials would previously just
go to the ER – even with the additional wait and costs involved – they now head straight for their local retail clinic or urgent care center, many of which are conveniently located at their local CVS or Walmart. One Millennial even described heading to their local urgent care as being like “speed dating” but with a doctor instead of a potential mate. How popular have these clinics become? At last count, there are some 3,000 of them – and counting! Transparency and Competitive Pricing While Millennials are not alone in believing that healthcare is too expensive, they are, arguably, the only generation likely to ask their providers for discounts or a less expensive treatment option. They also like it when prices are posted (as many urgent care and retail clinics do) and where there are no hidden costs or final bill surprises. Comparison shopping among hospitals, doctors, and other healthcare providers, (which would have been almost unheard of with previous generations), is commonplace with this generation. There is evidence that more than 40 percent of them ask for estimates before agreeing to any treatment plans. They can be so price-conscious that almost half have admitted to putting off healthcare because of the cost. Interconnectivity Millennials are connected 24/7 to their friends, their work, and the world in general. So, it’s no surprise they expect the same from their healthcare providers. Specifically, Millennials want to: B e able to use apps to book healthcare appointments rather than having to call. H ave online access to their and their families’ health data. T ake advantage of preventative care services via their smart phones or other devices. H ave two-way, full electronic communication with their doctors and other providers.
Results-based, Competitive Fees Millennials do not blindly accept the pricing practices of the healthcare industry, and they know that healthcare costs increase have outpaced inflation for most, if not all, of their lives. As a result, they usually look for new ways to pay for healthcare to make sure they are getting the greatest proverbial bang for their healthcare buck. These include: Single, monthly, upfront payments with no copays or deductibles. Upfront estimates rather than getting a bill after care is delivered. Payment structures that reflect quality of care versus quantity of care. Shared savings to encourage greater efficiency and cost effectiveness. Incentives that reward healthiness and preventative care. New Technologies Technologies such as telehealth to replace in-person visits that were inconceivable a few years back continue to gain acceptance and traction with Millennials. In fact, almost 75 percent of this generation have reported being interested in this service and more than half support its use. This is not surprising since Millennials are used to using video conferencing for personal phone calls and business meetings.
How Providers Can Keep Millennials’ Business The easiest way for providers to attract and keep Millennials as loyal patients and healthcare consumers is to listen to what they say they need and want rather than just conducting “business as usual.” It also means borrowing processes and services from healthcare providers, retailers and professional services that have won the business and loyalty of Millennials. These include offering the following: Same-day appointments with reduced wait times. Onsite, high-speed, free WiFi. ide variety of device chargers in waiting W rooms, hospital rooms. “Welcome” kiosks for check-in and follow-up appointments. Courtesy tablets for accessing healthcare information while onsite.
Robust apps and portals for accessing
O nsite urgent-care clinics similar to those offered by retailers.
physicians.
E nhanced community wellness programs.
health records and communications with Telehealth via mobile devices. Messaging and communications via message platforms, e.g., iMessage, WhatsApp.
This quarter’s Spotlight is on Associate Attorney, Sean Rotstan. What is your area of expertise within SAC? I specialize in arbitration and trial work, as well as appeals. My work is also focused on resolving cases at the earliest appropriate point to maximize recovery and combat aging of accounts.
What one piece of sage advice can you offer to our clients that can help them in the future? SAC’s philosophy is to handle claims with the appropriate levels of aggressiveness and reasonableness, as we have found this leads to long term success in early resolutions. We exhaust the avenues of pre-filing resolution, and when the claims remain unpaid, we litigate to force the payers to become reasonable in their negotiations. If they do not, we aggressively litigate or arbitrate the cases. This balance of reasonableness and aggressive pursuit should be borne in mind in client expectations.
Can you talk about a recent success story of yours? What was the challenge and how were you able to overcome it? Recently I had to deal with abuse of an elder in my family by a person they perceived to be a friend. Through applying the same skills, I would apply to a case for SAC, I was able to carefully and calmly
While many of the above may seem somewhat outof-place or alien to many hospitals, they are, to a great degree, very common outside of a healthcare setting. Given that companies such as Amazon and
gather the relevant information from my elderly family member and those at the scene, as well as the partially executed contracts between the parties. After careful review of the contract verbiage, I was able to get them out of the contract and out of the harmful situation.
Do you have any hobbies or interests outside of work? I am an aspiring author and attempt to spend my free time writing, reading, and experiencing everything to further the stories I tell. Which is convenient because I also happen to like going places, seeing things, and eating food. And now I can do so while saying it’s for the book I’m writing. Although most of what I write tends to be about putting people in miserable situations, so I’m not sure what that says about me. Outside of that, I have an on-again off-again affair with regular exercise, both intense cardio and weightlifting. And I’m always in favor of a nice walk or hike.
Do you have any charitable causes that interest you and events you have participated in recently? My significant other and I do what we can to aid local domestic violence shelters in Long Beach and the South Bay.
Do you have family and/or pets you’d like to tell us about? Not now, but I am desperately hoping to get two mini dachshunds in the near future (my significant other will only let us get a pet that doesn’t shed). If I lived in a colder climate (and lacked the shedding restriction) my second choice would be huskies. Perhaps when I enter the hermit stage of my life I’ll move to Nova Scotia and get one.
Google, which have defined the type of service Millennials want, are poised to become bigger players in healthcare, providers may need to become more like them and less like a traditional healthcare institution if they are to attract and retain the loyalty of almost a quarter of the U.S. population.
Do you have any guilty pleasure television shows, movies, or other activities to tell us about? I’m not sure about guilty pleasures, but in terms of television shows I have recently been most fond of, The Bear on FX is quite a personal and moving story of friendship, loss, and growth set in the context of a restaurant and fine dining. As a foodie and lover of all things written well, it’s been a delight to watch. I’ve also recently started following Los Angeles’ National Women’s Soccer League team, Angel City FC, who just made it into the playoffs for the first time. I’ve also loosely followed Wrexham AFC ever since I saw the docuseries, Welcome to Wrexham, last year. Not to be too literal, but I guess my guilty pleasure watch would be any Nordic Noir. The grislier the better. Something about the character-driven detective drama set against the backdrop of gloomy weather, dead or missing persons, and serial killer psychosis really catches my attention. Most recently I watched a miniseries called The Chestnut Man which was great. And nothing quite beats The Bridge (the original Swedish version, of course).
What are your favorite foods? Colors? Other favorites? That’s an easy one to answer – Sushi. I could probably eat it every day of the week and never get tired of it. There’s a great spot about two hundred feet from where I live, which has been a blessing on my tongue and a curse on my wallet. Unfortunately, there’s also a Starbucks and ice cream spot two hundred feet from where I live. I work out more now than I used to.
UPCOMING EVENTS:
November 9, 2023 - HFMA San Diego - Live Webinar
Join our Managing Partner, Rich Lovich, as he presents a crucial webinar for the HFMA San Diego chapter. Dive deep into the topic: “Stop Leaving Millions of Dollars in Uncollected Payments on the Table: Contract Interpretation Strategies and Effective Post Denial Remedies to Comp.” For more details and registration, visit hfmasandiego.org.
December 6-7,2023 - Illinois AAHAM Annual State Institute
Join our esteemed partner, Marcus Morrow, as he provides a legislative update at the Illinois AAHAM Annual State Institute on December 6-7, 2023. AAHAM is a leading organization in Illinois, championing the professional development of revenue cycle professionals. For more details and to register, visit illinoisaaham.com.
All articles are written by the SAC Litigation team. The SAC Litigation team includes attorneys, nurses, and physicians with extensive experience in all areas of law related to healthcare matters. Additionally, SAC partners hold legal advisory positions with healthcare organizations and sit on the boards of numerous healthcare-related organizations, and monitor all outgoing SAC client marketing materials and related content.
DISCLAIMER: This newsletter is for general educational and informational purposes only. You should not act upon this information without seeking your own independent professional advice.
We would love to hear from you! If you have questions, comments or feedback, please email us at SACReview@sacfirm.com.
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Quarterly Newsletter FALL EDITION 2023 Enclosed
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