RECENT RESEARCH FINDINGS
Census 2010—the weirdest ever?
It’s time again for the decennial headcount of everyone
living in America, the Constitution-mandated process first begun in 1790.
There is much at stake including changes to the apportionment of
Congressional seats as well as the distribution of some $400 billion in
federal spending on local programs. Thus the census process frequently is
shrouded in controversy and the 2010 census is no exception. This year
everyone is receiving a short form consisting of ten questions. (The long
form that used to go to every sixth residence is covered by another study.)
The cost will be a staggering $14 billion, slightly over $100 / household.
In a major leap backwards, online responses will not be allowed (as they
were 10 years ago). In addition, the question asked to determine race
includes the word “Negro”. Furthermore, Hispanic advocacy groups such as the
National Coalition of Latino Clergy & Christian Leaders are calling for
illegal immigrants to boycott the census unless immigration laws are
changed.
|
 |
Plus ça change – healthcare’s very own
Y2K
Health insurers must be feeling a real sense of
déjà vu. A major national debate on healthcare reform is creating looming
challenges for payers everywhere. Moreover, a technological challenge threatens
to disrupt the claims processing model upon which the provision of health
insurance is based. Shades of 1993 when HillaryCare was being advanced by the
Clinton administration and the technological threat was called Y2K. Now it’s
2009, the Obama administration is fully deployed to push through legislation
that would all but reinvent the provision of healthcare in the U.S. And now the
technological threat is called ICD-10 and, to many healthcare executives, it is
more daunting than Y2K. Within the next four years, payers and providers will
have to migrate from the current ICD-9 classification of diagnoses to ICD-10,
which will raise the total potential code set from 17,000 to 155,000. Yet unlike
Y2K, which was purely remedial, ICD-10 presages significant improvement in the
accuracy of transaction processing and, ultimately, lower costs. As one senior
health insurance executive told us during a recent survey, “The timing,
programming and financial challenges are staggering. But the yield could be
substantial.”
|
 |
Has anyone asked the uninsured how
they feel about healthcare?
A soon to be released study by P.K. Data's
Geodemics study group reveals an interesting contradiction in the current
national debate over healthcare reform. A key premise of those in support of
publicly funded healthcare is that it will provide "universal" coverage. Yet
many who would supposedly benefit from Uncle Sam's largess say that they worry
about a point-of-service system bogged down by bureaucracy and a distorted
application of triage.
|
 |
What's a little inflation when you
don't have a job in the first place?
While most have lauded Bernanke & Company's
measures to guide the economy into recovery mode, there are persistent worries
that the government's mega-costly bailouts are going to trigger a round of
inflation not seen since the 70's. While this is a huge concern for economists
and the capital markets, a P.K. Data survey of heads of household shows that
those currently out of work or who feel that they are at risk for becoming
unemployed would gladly exchange high interest rates for steady income.
|
 |
The perfect storm for the pool and hot
tub industry.
It's bad enough that the current economic
malaise has devastated the residential swimming pool and hot tub industry. Sales
of new inground pools have fallen nearly 75% from their 2004 peak. Hot tubs have not fared much
better. Competition for the few remaining pools that are being built has driven
down prices, which in turn has eviscerated margins. Adding insult to injury,
commodity prices for cement, steel and PVC—three
staples of the pool business—are
on the rise. Tough time to be a pool builder.
|
|
Physicians who refer their patients to
clinical trials are unlikely to recall any websites featuring trial listings.
Pharmaceutical firms spend hundreds of millions of dollars every year to recruit
participants for trials of new drugs. However, our research consistently shows
that the vast majority of potential subjects first consult with their physicians
prior to applying for a prospective trial. Yet few primary care physicians, and
even fewer specialists, appear versed in sources of information concerning open
trials in their area. In one recent P.K. Data survey, 83% of physicians who
stated that they occasionally or frequently refer their patients to clinical
trials could not identify a single source of clinical trial information. Most
said they would suggest that their patients do their own Internet search.
|
|
Elite frequent fliers have a significant
tendency to prefer point-to-point carriers
“When you die you usually go to heaven by way of Atlanta” is an amusing
aphorism, but most business travelers would rather fly non-stop wherever they
are going. In a survey of 1,005 top fliers, 89% said that they would pay a
reasonable price premium in order to avoid making unnecessary connections. The
average “reasonable” fare increase for a non-stop flight versus a similarly
scheduled connecting flight was 32%.
|
|
The 'China Syndrome' 2009
U.S. consumer pushback to
imported foods and medicines is increasing. Recent horror stories concerning
everything from defective drywall to tainted blood thinner have consumers more
alert regarding the point of origin for many of the products… or so they say.
Yet in a recent national survey of heads-of-household who self-identified as
college educated and “somewhat” or “very” careful shoppers, only 13% (average)
could identify their favorite brand of children’s toy, toothpaste, or dog food
as being imported or domestically produced, in spite of the fact that each of
the three categories has been implicated in product recalls.
|
|
No health threat from public pools
The country’s 200,000 public
pools, especially those found in water parks and state and local facilities,
have been under considerable scrutiny lately. New legislation aimed at curbing
drain-entrapment drowning as well as illnesses from contaminated water have
strained already tight budgets resulting in widespread pool closings just in
time for the summer season. Yet most visitors feel that their favorite community
pool is well-maintained and perfectly safe. In a telephone survey of parents of
children ages 10-16, only 4% expressed any concern with public pool safety.
|
|
|
|
|
|