In 2012, healthcare costs per person averaged almost $9,000, a monumental increase from 2007, when healthcare per capita hovered around $7,600.

Aug 06, 2018  The demand drivers for leased data center space are constantly evolving, particularly in recent years. With this continued change, more than 700 decision-makers, responsible for selecting their company’s IT and storage services, participated in a study commissioned by Vertiv to further understand this steady evolution.

Total spending on healthcare reaching $2.8 trillion in 2012, according to the latest data from CMS, and the trends have led to a panel to tackle the challenge.

The State Health Care Cost Containment Commission, part of the University of Virginia's Miller Center, released a report detailing how the U.S. should address its high-cost problems. The Commission, co-chaired by former HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt and former Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter Jr., includes several prominent hospital and health system leaders: Glenn Steele Jr., MD, president and CEO of Geisinger Health System in Danville, Pa., Lloyd Dean, president and CEO of Dignity Health in San Francisco and George Halvorson, former chairman and CEO of Kaiser Permanente in Oakland, Calif.

The Commission's report outlined many findings, including the main drivers of high healthcare costs in the U.S. Here are the nine primary drivers, according to the report.

1. Physician, facility and drug costs. Data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development have consistently showed the average unit costs for U.S. physicians, hospitals, facilities and drugs are the highest in the world.

2. Expensive technologies and procedures. When Americans do receive treatment, they often choose the most expensive technologies and procedures. For example, MRIs in the United States occur twice as often compared with the average country in OECD data.

3. Fragmented and uncoordinated care. Because care providers often treat the same patient with little consultation, unnecessary care, errors and dissatisfaction proliferates.

4. Lack of cost consideration from patients. There is an assumption among patients that the most expensive care leads to the best quality, but expensive care has no correlation with quality. Patients have limited capabilities to participate in the cost decision making process of their care.

5. Fee-for-service. Hospitals and physicians are reimbursed for every service they provide, which often leads to a focus on volumes instead of a focus on care.

6. High administrative expenses. The morass of health insurers and billing processes cost the U.S. healthcare system billions in wasted costs every year.

7. Unhealthy behaviors. Chronic illnesses — like heart disease, cancer and diabetes — cause about 70 percent of all deaths in the United States, and they are the most expensive to treat. A majority of chronic illnesses stem from unhealthy behaviors.

8. Expensive end-of-life care. The last year of an American's life is the most expensive for medical treatment, and the unnecessary procedures and repeated hospitalizations provide little value to the patient and the system at large.

9. Provider consolidation. Hospitals and health systems are merging and acquiring each other at a feverish pace, and the same goes for physician groups. Studies have shown that although provider consolidation leads to some economies of scale, the increased market power leads to higher prices and oligopolistic behaviors.

More Articles on Healthcare Costs:
Is Healthcare Spending Finally Under Control?
Survey: CFOs Optimistic But Concerned About Healthcare Costs
3 Strategies to Contain Acute-Care Costs

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noun

• 1A person who drives a vehicle.

  • ‘He proposed the council give incentives to taxi drivers to convert their vehicles to liquefied petroleum gas, which is much cleaner.’
  • ‘The arrests came after the police received reports that a gang of youths were allegedly hurling racist abuse at taxi drivers and damaging vehicles.’
  • ‘If he's a student, a daily driver probably drives a vehicle that used to belong to his parents.’
  • ‘Others will be taxi drivers, students, shopkeepers or their sons.’
  • ‘Speed cameras do not detect drunk-drivers, careless drivers, uninsured drivers, unlicensed drivers, stolen vehicles or crooks in getaway cars.’
  • ‘But police are concerned that most of those stopped were delivery drivers or drivers of other commercial vehicles.’
  • ‘Utility workers, Social Security employees, students and taxi drivers rallied in support of the strikers in San Jose on the same day.’
  • ‘That, in the view of this paper and thousands of frustrated motorists, bus passengers, taxi drivers and truckers, is totally unacceptable.’
  • ‘Why don't you get the opinion of people who use the system, such as bus drivers and taxi drivers, instead of someone down the road?’
  • ‘This is because, car owners are more careful drivers, than heavy vehicle drivers.’
  • ‘A North Yorkshire police spokesman said the driver of the other vehicle and a passing motorist managed to put out the fire before the fire service arrived.’
  • ‘A campaign to change the law to protect drivers of emergency vehicles from prosecution has been stepped up after a speeding charge against an ambulanceman was dropped.’
  • ‘Since the introduction of the Australian Road Rules in December 1999 heavy vehicle drivers must wear a seatbelt if it is fitted in their vehicle.’
  • ‘People of all ages stood on the footpaths cheering on the vehicles and their drivers as they passed through the towns generously donating into the collection boxes.’
  • ‘Surely, however, the views of the drivers of the 40,000 vehicles, who often are themselves residents of the wider local area, are equally important.’
  • ‘Officers acting on tip-offs and targeting suspicious vehicles found 22 drivers to be breaking the law’
  • ‘Clearways and other parking restrictions will be in force on roads around the racecourse and police have warned drivers their vehicles will be towed away if parked illegally.’
  • ‘Speeding by drivers of heavy vehicles, especially those of private buses, has become a real threat to fellow road users and pedestrians alike.’
  • ‘Recently, drivers of high-accessibility vehicles have been using the cart-tracks and even the meadows as short cuts.’
  • ‘Many truck drivers also park their vehicles in this area.’

  1. 1.1A person who drives a specified kind of animal.
     • ‘Urged on by the players, the drivers of the mules took some frightening risks.’
     • ‘The driver whistled to the mules and they slowed to a steady walk.’
     • ‘He strode boldly up the bank towards the mule driver and tipped his hat.’
     • ‘The smith walked the driver out to the stables, where he untied the horses.’

• 2A wheel or other part in a mechanism that receives power directly and transmits motion to other parts.Like water for chocolate study guide answers.

  • ‘All the drivers and the trailing wheel down one side are to be equalized in one system, and the same down the other side, for the other two points.’
  • ‘The internal receiving coil is connected to a receiver that provides electrical energy to the mechanical driver.’
  • ‘Typically the cogenerator consists of an energy source, a mechanical driver and an electric generator.’

  1. 2.1Electronics A device or part of a circuit that provides power for output.
     • ‘The output node of the gate driver is provided between the upper and lower transistors.’
     • ‘In one typical environment, the learning programmable limit switch is connected to an output shaft of a driver.’
     • ‘LSI has chosen to put the power amplifier for the line driver into the codec chip.’
     • ‘Servo drivers with digital signal processors provide alternatives to analog servo drivers.’
     • ‘Passive-matrix designs require individual drivers for each pixel, limiting the feasible number of pixels.’
  2. 2.2Computing A program that controls the operation of a device such as a printer or scanner.
     • ‘It will include desktops and laptops, plus printers, scanners, CD-ROM drivers and software when bought in the same transaction as the computer.’
     • ‘It is also working to add various hardware device drivers to the operating system.’
     • ‘It means you can put exactly the same bundle of applications, drivers and operating system onto any machine and be certain there won't be problems.’
     • ‘The input manager operates between a device driver and a player application program.’
     • ‘Every product is provided with the drivers on CD ROM, together with a manual in PDF.’

• 3A factor which causes a particular phenomenon to happen or develop.

  ‘the hope of achieving such monopolies becomes the main driver of investment’

  • ‘Falling global inflation and strong domestic growth were the main drivers of exceptional investment returns in the 1980s and 1990s.’
  • ‘Business investment was again the main driver, along with net exports and housing.’
  • ‘Tony Blair promised to be tough on the causes of crime but two of the main drivers of crime are alcohol and drugs.’
  • ‘By now you will have probably detected the main dramatic drivers of the story.’
  • ‘The main drivers of the surge are hedge funds - secretive, loosely regulated pools of capital deployed to take extra risks to achieve above-average returns.’
  • ‘That's one of the main drivers to get this system extended throughout the whole of Craven.’
  • ‘There are three main drivers of this debt explosion.’
  • ‘There have been three main drivers behind the buy-to-let boom.’
  • ‘But the shares could still be one of the main drivers in the market.’
  • ‘In addition, if the main drivers of UK retail banking slow next year, buying another firm may be the only way for Lloyds to grow.’
  • ‘Continued loan growth as well as cost savings are set to be the main drivers of banking profits in 2005 and beyond.’
  • ‘The main drivers of change are now transnational corporations rather than national governments.’
  • ‘But, for McCall, the main driver behind the move is circulation.’
  • ‘Its main driver, though, seems to be the attempt to legislate away the problems of a post-colonial country steeped in racism of all kinds.’
  • ‘The main driver behind the merger had been the weak demand in the past few years for steel, one of the world's most basic industrial products.’
  • ‘This is convenient but not the main driver behind the change.’
  • ‘Sentiment towards the housing market, therefore, will be the main driver of the companies share price in the short term.’

• 4A golf club with a flat face and wooden head, used for driving from the tee.

  • ‘If you hit 10 golf balls at the driving range with your driver, you'll improve by the eighth swing or so.’
  • ‘I always use the same six clubs, working my way up from the sand wedge to the driver.’
  • ‘Some of the greens were so steeply sloped that the ball didn't stop, and you had to get your driver out to putt it back uphill.’
  • ‘The veteran managed to go to the top of the leaderboard despite using her driver on only eight occasions.’
  • ‘On a flat and wide fairway, use your driver, and record the distances of each ball.’
  • ‘Play with golf-themed tokens including a golf cart, a driver, a putter and a bucket of balls!’
  • ‘I was able to research irons, drivers, putters, you name it.’
  • ‘On tight holes, hit a lofted wood off the tee instead of the driver, or even a middle iron.’
  • ‘I'm always fooling with new drivers, fairway woods and putters, but I don't switch very often.’
  • ‘Our panel reviewed drivers, fairway woods, irons, wedges, putters, balls and hybrid clubs.’
  • ‘Wooden drivers had a higher centre of gravity, and it was tough to get them airborne off the ground unless you had a swing like Sam Snead's.’
  • ‘Some golfers are buying high-COR drivers even though the USGA hasn't made a final decision.’
  • ‘To flatten out your swing, hit some drivers with the ball teed up on top of a golf pencil.’
  • ‘On the range, use your driver or fairway wood and put the ball on a tee.’
  • ‘I don't think golfers have enough loft on their drivers, especially amateurs.’
  • ‘For most golfers, adding loft to their drivers will add an average of at least 10 yards to their drives.’
  • ‘This is because today's golf balls are designed to spin less off drivers.’

Phrases

in the driver's seat

• • ‘Nevertheless, he commends the President's approach for beginning to 'put the consumer in the driver's seat.'’
  • ‘In many different respects, they just want a place in the driver's seat.’
  • ‘Dan Moore is making plans to get back in the driver's seat.’
  • ‘Young people throughout the world find irresistible the prospect of being in the driver's seat of their own lives.’
  • ‘Markets, not morality, are in the driver's seat.’
  • ‘Here, drought is in the driver's seat.’
  • ‘Putting 'experts' back in the driver's seat will drive his Digital Universe project.’
  • ‘Utah fans are thinking that they are in the driver's seat.’
  • ‘Well, we knew they would, they are just too good to not spend at least part of the season in the drivers ' seat.’
  • ‘The politicians were in the driver's seat!’

• In control of a situation.

  ‘she shows him that she is the one in the driver's seat’

  • ‘You have the ability to be in the driver's seat by taking a proactive role in constructing contracting.’
  • ‘President Nujoma will remain in the driver's seat for a good time yet.’
  • ‘But there was no doubt that they remained firmly in the driver's seat.’
  • ‘If the plan is to work, it will require dedication, even passion, from whoever is in the driver's seat.’
  • ‘This show is unique because the audience is in the driver's seat - you'll see what I mean.’
  • ‘Coury was in the driver's seat to help take the merged company public a year later.’
  • ‘However, more often than not these pop hits were composed with someone else in the driver's seat.’
  • ‘Instead, they like the handout approach since it keeps them in the driver's seat.’
  • ‘Indeed, his sterling connections may not be enough to land him in the driver's seat.’
  • ‘If you understand that you are responsible for your own life, you are in the driver's seat.’