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L.E.K. Consulting recently conducted a study of over 200 hospital executives that found 60 percent expecting budget increases in 2011, compared with just 22 percent in 2010. The study states that this increase in spending will continue beyond this year as a result of millions of new patients from healthcare reform changes. A majority of respondents stated that their facilities plan to increase GPO usage as a primary method of dealing with these increases while still adhering to fundamental principles of cost containment.
In fact, the study states that these executives expect GPO utilization to increase 20percent by 2015. The reasoning is simple: GPOs save money and— as this study asserts—will continue to be a vital component of healthcare reform implementation.