A Decade of Tracking Health System Change

Originally published by the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC), 2006.

A Decade of Tracking Health System Change

The Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC) marked a decade of tracking how health care was organized, financed, and delivered in communities across the United States. Through its Community Tracking Study, HSC conducted repeated site visits to 12 nationally representative metropolitan areas, interviewing health care leaders and analyzing local market dynamics over time. This longitudinal approach provided a unique window into how national health care trends played out at the local level.

Over the decade, HSC documented major shifts in the health care landscape, including the rise and retreat of managed care, the consolidation of hospitals and health plans, the growth of hospital-physician alignment, the emergence of consumer-driven health care products, and the persistent challenges of rising costs and expanding uninsurance. The research demonstrated that health care is fundamentally local, with national trends manifesting differently depending on local market structure, competitive dynamics, regulatory environments, and community needs. This body of work provided policy makers, researchers, and health care leaders with evidence-based insights into how the health care system was changing and the implications of those changes for patients, providers, and payers.

Sources and Further Reading

Center for Studying Health System Change, "A Decade of Tracking Health System Change" (2006).