Overhauling the US health care payment system

During the next five years, rapid innovation may restructure the value chain of health care payments and change the sector’s balance of power.
JUNE 2007 • Nick A. LeCuyer and Shubham Singhal
The McKinsey Quarterly JUNE 2007

In This Article
Exhibit 1: Inefficiency in the health care system is concentrated in the payment flows to medical providers from consumers and insurance companies.
Exhibit 2: The health care payment system is more complicated and less efficient than payment systems in the retail sector.
Exhibit 3: Consumer bad debt is already a significant problem for providers and is growing fast.
Exhibit 4: Transactions between payers and providers are numerous and complex.