John Adlesich or the upsurge of a healthcare executive professional on healthcare industry trends in 2021: Expand the market while improving community health. New entrants can be a force multiplier and increase the overall market for health services. Look for opportunities where your services could have a significant impact on community health and partner intentionally. For example, about half of women age 40 and older do not get screening mammograms. If mammography services provided by a large retailer were successful in motivating this population, the majority of women receiving in-store mammograms would not need follow-up care. However, many would require referrals for follow-up diagnostic exams and, possibly, treatment. Establishing a two-way relationship with that new entrant — sharing data and providing easy access to hospitals or health systems — could open the door to a potentially significant flow of new referrals.
John Adlesich on healthcare industry trends: Democratic control in the Senate will also impact healthcare. For example, Washington state Senator Patty Murray will chair the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. She has advocated for a more robust federal response on COVID-19. And Senator Ron Wyden, Oregon, leads the Finance Committee and has pushed for drug pricing reform and drug price negotiation. These appointments and nominations point to a strong emphasis on COVID-19 recovery and vaccine distribution and coordination. For example, Fauci remains as the Director of the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases, and there’s now a COVID-19 data director (Shahpar), indicating this administration will emphasize data and reporting. Also evident in these appointments is a Biden administration focus on health equity and healthcare disparities—particularly with Nunez-Smith as the first Equity Task Force Chair for COVID-19.
John Adlesich believes that 2021 is a defining year for the health industry. Assuming that we do make these great strides in lessening the societal impact of COVID-19 and move to a new normal, I think we will begin to make some key shifts that will ultimately improve health care’s cost, quality, reliability, and underlying data infrastructure. Repeal and replace or Medicare for All? A public option or an individual mandate? Drug price controls or an international pricing index? For the last 10 years, big moves in health care have largely been frozen as providers, insurance companies, investors, and others waited to see which policies would remain permanent and which would end up on the scrap heap of history. The Democrat’s extremely narrow margins of control of government and need to heal the nation by avoiding extreme polarization means that sweeping changes to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) will be off the table—probably not for 200 years, but certainly for the next two years and more likely four. That said, the Biden administration will take advantage of every administrative tool to further cement current law in place. With a legislative détente in place and more stability on implementation, private sector bets become more certain. There is every reason to assume rapid investment and modernization across the health care sector.
John Adlesich currently works as administrator at Marquis Companies. His latest healthcare industry experience includes positions as executive director at Powerback Rehabilitation Lafayette (Genesis Healthcare) between Aug 2020 – Jan 2021, administrator at Mesa Vista of Boulder between Mar 2019 – Aug 2020, chief executive officer at Sedgwick County Memorial Hospital between Jul 2018 – Feb 2019, interim chief operating officer at Toiyabe Indian Health Project between Mar 2018 – Jun 2018.
