Will Reimbursement Pressures Drive Supply Chain Innovation?

The HIDA/McKinsey report’s insights suggest that industry needs to aggressively strip away supply chain costs. It provided the following four key takeaways:

• The purpose of distribution is to make the transition of products from the factory to the point of use as efficient as possible and this focus will be even more important as reimbursement pressures increase.

• Seek out solutions to help customers reduce waste, avoid preventable events and improve the quality of care.

• Increase automation, standardize and simplify processes to reduce transaction costs between manufacturers, distributors and providers. Investments in technology and systems are likely to be part of the solution, but process improvements are equally or more important.

• Work with self-distributors to understand the role that the supply chain plays, and to determine ways to save money.