Deloitte Insights Podcast

When most people think about health care, doctors, hospitals, insurance premiums and prescriptions come to mind. But spending often goes beyond that, to purchases that are outside of conventional therapies and treatments and home care for family members. Taking all of these expenses into account, a recent study by the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions and the Deloitte Center for Financial Services found that consumers spent 363 billion, or 13 percent, more for health care goods and services in 2009 than is captured in official government accounts. In fact, these out of pocket health care costs consume 16 percent of the average U.S. households discretionary spending, second only to housing costs.

In the latest episode of Deloitte Insights, Paul Keckley, PhD, executive director of the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions, part of Deloitte LLP, discusses the study and what it reveals about this substantial and increasing burden in the average household.

When most people think about health care, doctors, hospitals, insurance premiums and prescriptions come to mind. But spending often goes beyond that, to purchases that are outside of conventional therapies and treatments and home care for family members. Taking all of these expenses into account, a recent study by the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions and the Deloitte Center for Financial Services found that consumers spent 363 billion, or 13 percent, more for health care goods and services in 2009 than is captured in official government accounts. In fact, these out of pocket health care costs consume 16 percent of the average U.S. household discretionary spending, second only to housing costs.

Reforms in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act are changing the way health care companies do business. And one result of this type of industry game changer is an uptick in merger and acquisition, M and A, activity. Those companies that will be adversely affected by health care reform are going to need to merge to survive. Other companies may see growth opportunities through the acquisition of businesses that they may have never been able to acquire otherwise.

In this episode of Deloitte Insights, Simon Gisby, managing director of Deloitte Corporate Finance LLC, and Phil Pfrang, partner in Deloitte and Touche LLP, discuss how health care providers and health plans can prepare for industry overhaul and M and A conversations.

Unemployment in the United States has hovered around 9.5 percent for the last year, more than 4 percent higher than the rate was at the start of the recession in December 2007. Yet some talent professionals believe the global competition for talent has accelerated.

In this episode of Deloitte Insights, Jeff Schwartz and Andy Liakopoulos, both principals with Deloitte Consulting LLP, discuss this paradox, and talent strategies moving forward.

The frontier of business analytics is creating new possibilities to improve performance, identify growth opportunities and avoid risks. Analytics offers the uncommon insights that allow you to see beyond the data and move from what I need to do to what I need to know. Getting to those insights takes asking the right questions, or crunchy questions, that if you find the answer will move the needle for your business.

In the latest episode of Deloitte Insights, Jane Griffin, a principal with Deloitte Consulting LLP and Americas Deloitte Analytics leader, and Tom Davenport, a senior adviser to Deloitte and a distinguished professor of Information Technology and Management at Babson College, discuss how business analytics can drive smarter decisions and better results.

The introduction of the Dodd-Frank Act and new SEC proxy disclosure rules has changed the way businesses view traditional enterprise risk management. Now more than ever boards are seeking greater transparency and better mechanisms to carry out their risk oversight responsibilities.

In this episode of Insights, Henry Ristuccia, a partner of Deloitte and Touche, and co Leader of the Deloitte Governance and Risk Management Services, and Maureen Errity, a director in the Deloitte Center for Corporate Governance, explain the importance of Risk Intelligence and why it should be an imperative for every executive board.