Tag Blog

“The Financial Crisis and Healthcare”

Thursday, January 08, 2009

TAG Health and TAG Finance recently hosted a joint event titled “The Financial Crisis and Healthcare”.
The event received overwhelming interest, as we had to extend registration capacity and make room for
standing-room-only attendees.

Kirk Wilson, President & CEO of St. Joseph’s Hospital Atlanta, delivered the keynote address for the event,
and discussed the impact of the economy on healthcare providers, insurance companies, vendors, patients
& physicians. As the leader of one of the most technologically advanced hospitals in the country, Wilson’s
message to the healthcare industry for 2009 was that providers will be focused first on treating patients who
are currently ill, and all other opportunities would be evaluated on an as-needed basis.

As hospitals are trying to protect their bond ratings, Mr. Wilson talked about the reduction in credit availability
that hospitals and doctors are experiencing, ultimately resulting in barriers for technology adoption and patient
access. Mr. Wilson’s outlook was that 2009 will be another very trying year for the healthcare industry and the
economy in general; however, the light at the end of the tunnel will likely come in 2010 or 2011 when the markets
recover. At that point, according to Mr. Wilson, we can likely expect a “boom” to occur for healthcare industry
businesses and stakeholders.

The discussion continued with a roundtable of experts which included Dr. Ed Becker of Emory Rollins School;
Reatha Clark, Partner in PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Healthcare Advisory Practice; Dr. William Custer of Georgia
State; Allen Moseley, Partner at Noro-Moseley Partners; and Justin Barnes, VP of Government Relations at
Greenway Medical. The collective message from the distinguished panel was that, for the foreseeable future,
the economy will continue to have an adverse affect on healthcare technology.

The panel also addressed a number of the policy variables currently at hand, including the likely $20 billion funding
for health IT in President-elect Barack Obama’s proposed economic stimulus package. The consensus among the
panelists was that 2009 will continue to pose challenges for the healthcare sector as a whole; however, as we
emerge from the financial crisis and economic downturn, there could be considerable opportunities for innovation
and technology to drive the development of a 21st century healthcare delivery system.

The event was recorded and will be available soon on TAG TV at http://www.tagtvonline.com/.