Will the 2020 election change healthcare?

A majority of healthcare leaders said they believe there will not be disruptive changes to the healthcare system no matter who wins the U.S. presidency in November, according to the 2020 Industry Pulse Report from Change Healthcare and the HealthCare Executive Group.

The report was built on the survey responses of 445 healthcare leaders from insurers, providers, and third-party vendor organizations between October and December 2019.

According to the survey, 39 percent of c-suite respondents and 28 percent of all respondents say they believe there will be no significant changes to the healthcare system no matter who wins the election. Meanwhile 31 percent said they believe the Affordable care act to continue to be unwound, and 26 percent expect it to be strengthened, according to the report.

Only 17 percent expect to see a public option take hold of the industry while 3 percent think the country will move to a single-payer Medicare for all option after the election.

The result is significant coming on the heels of Iowa caucus and New Hampshire primary wins for Independent Senator Bernie Sanders, of Vermont, who has made a single-payer Medicare for all option a big part of his bid to unseat President Donald J. Trump in November.

“The 2020 Industry Pulse is the most powerful and complete insight into differing Industry perspectives that we have had in 10 years,” Ferris Taylor, executive director of the HealthCare Executive Group, says in a new release. “It should facilitate a much greater discussion and collaboration across all segments of healthcare.”

• Other key data points contained within the report include:

• 62 percent of insurers says their organizations are using alternative payment models while 43 percent of providers say they do

• 18 percent of providers and 24 percent of payers say they have a full consumer-centric strategy

• 14 percent of providers say they have no consumer-centric strategy while 100 percent of insurers say they have a strategy or one in development

• 23 percent of providers and 11 percent of insurers see consumer demand driving interoperability while 40 percent of c-suite respondents believe interoperability will materialize when consumers insist on it

• 38 percent of insurers and 56 percent of providers believe artificial intelligence will have a positive impact on healthcare by increasing efficiency, while 28 percent of insurers and 42 percent of providers saying it will reduce costs

“This year’s report provides a fascinating look at where healthcare is in 2020,” David Gallegos, SVP of consulting services at Change Healthcare, says in the release. “In our 10 years of fielding this research, I don’t think we’ve seen healthcare industry leaders so polarized on some strategic issues and so tightly aligned on others. These insights can help foster a dialogue between payers and providers about their priorities, driving collaboration to advance solutions on those issues in the year ahead.”