HX in 2025: Organizational resilience in a changing environment
Navigating change in the healthcare ecosystem is a constant challenge. Through the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the federal government exerts a profound influence on the industry as a policymaker, regulator, and the nation’s largest payer. Each administration brings its own set of priorities, often reshaping how care is provided and paid for.
The incoming administration ran on a healthcare policy platform promising to disrupt the status quo—to "Make America Healthy Again.” Much of the proposed agenda focuses on reforming the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). While pivoting the research and public health infrastructure toward reducing chronic illness promises certain long-term benefits, Medicare and Medicaid changes are likely to have more immediate impact on providers and payers.
Regardless of specific policy changes, the core principles of healthcare delivery—accessible, high-quality, human-centered care—will remain steadfast. The scope and scale of change may still be evolving, but healthcare organizations can take steps today to ensure they’re best able to serve their patients and communities amid this constantly shifting landscape.
4 actions organizations can take today to prepare for tomorrow
1. Deeply understand your market to effectively meet their needs
Go beyond community needs assessments by leveraging focus groups, online behavioral information from your market, and consumer feedback to design access, inform choice, and ensure locally relevant price transparency for consumers and patients.
In the first Trump administration, price transparency was a key focus. It’s an issue that resonates with both sides of the aisle and is popular with the public; a January 2024 Marist poll found that 94% of the public supports posting prices for health plans, hospitals, and doctors, and making sure they’re easily accessible. Having a strategic perspective and approach to transparency will help organizations stay ahead of the curve.
2. Double down on delivering safe, high-quality, compassionate care
Policy statements from think tanks across the spectrum stress the importance of integrating clinical outcomes and experience data in payment programs. Organizations should leverage tools like patient experience surveys and comments to align processes with patient needs and expectations. Focusing on the patient voice aligns with both CMS quality programs and consumer expectations, as patients are the best at assessing their own healthcare outcomes.
3. Prepare to succeed in Medicare Advantage programs
Develop high-performing networks using actionable data to manage quality, experience, and the overall cost of care across the continuum.
The nominee to lead CMS, Dr. Mehmet Oz, has expressed his support for Medicare Advantage, and suggested making it the default option for Medicare enrollees. He’s also championed the use of technology, including telehealth, digital tools, and AI, to enhance access to care and care efficiency in value-based care environments.
4. Build trust with your patients and your people
Trust in science has declined. Even proven practices, including the clear benefits of vaccines to improve the health and well-being of children, are facing greater scrutiny. Healthcare providers still command respect within communities, but “healthcare” as a system is found wanting.
Making care safe, and eliminating harm, must continue to be a top priority. And expanding the definition of safety to include physical, emotional, and financial well-being will help restore healthcare’s social capital, which has been strained in recent years. The more we can foster respect, earn trust, be the safe harbor for excellent care, and help those who come to us in times of need, the better we can navigate the rocky road ahead.
Predicting the future is a hazardous business. But healthcare organizations can prepare themselves for whatever it holds by focusing on the core of what they do: delivering care that’s safe, high quality, accessible, affordable, and trustworthy for all they serve. When that remains our North Star, we all benefit.
Remember: We’re in this together. If you’d like to explore how Press Ganey can support you in navigating the challenges and opportunities ahead, reach out to a member of our team.