Publications

08 Mar 2017
Op-Ed

Op-Ed: Can the Proposed American Health Care Act Improve on 'Obamacare'?

also stand to benefit, largely due to the legislation’s proposed tax cuts. In addition, the plan also advocates for expanded use of Health Savings Accounts, tax-advantaged savings accounts for medical expenses, which are currently only... View Details

Keywords: by John Quelch, Dr. Gordon Moore, and Emily Boudreau

13 Aug 2018
Research & Ideas

Women Heart Patients Have Better Survival Odds with Women Doctors

prospects of lower pay or fewer chances at promotion than men. In the medical world, recent studies show doctors are less alert to symptoms in older adults when a patient is female. Heart attacks are the leading cause of death in the... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Health

January 1993 (Revised October 1993)
Case

Medtronic, Inc.

In 1991, Bill George, CEO of Medtronic, the world's largest manufacturer of pacemakers, was evaluating his strategic options in light of the changing economic environment. In the United States, Europe, and Japan, governments were considering regulatory changes to... View Details

Keywords: Diversification; Corporate Strategy; Health Care and Treatment; Policy; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry

2023
Article

Building the Business Case for an Inclusive Approach to Digital Health Measurement with a Web App (Market Opportunity Calculator): Instrument Development Study

By: Mitchell Tang, Yashoda Sharma, Jennifer C. Goldsack and Ariel Dora Stern

Background: The use of digital health measurement tools has grown substantially in recent years. However, there are concerns that the promised benefits from these products will not be shared equitably. Underserved populations, such as those with lower education and... View Details

Keywords: Demographics; Product Development; Health Care and Treatment; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry

August 2022
Supplement

NOW PT (B): Should We Invest?

By: George A. Riedel, Amy Klopfenstein and Mel Martin

This (B) case examines the results of the HBS Impact Investment Fund student team’s diligence on Neurologic Optimal Wellness Physical Therapy (NOW PT). After examining Springfield’s demographics, anticipated PT demand, local competition, and NOW PT’s financial... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Social Entrepreneurship; Finance; Investment; Health; Health Care and Treatment; Medical Specialties; Buildings and Facilities; Health Industry; Financial Services Industry; North and Central America; United States; Massachusetts

2009
Working Paper

Input Constraints and the Efficiency of Entry: Lessons from Cardiac Surgery

By: David M. Cutler, Robert S. Huckman and Jonathan T. Kolstad

Prior studies suggest that, with elastically supplied inputs, free entry may lead to an inefficiently high number of firms in equilibrium. Under input scarcity, however, the welfare loss from free entry is reduced. Further, free entry may increase use of high-quality... View Details

Keywords: Government Legislation; Health Care and Treatment; Medical Specialties; Market Entry and Exit; Welfare; Health Industry; Pennsylvania

Article

Drivers of the Variation in Prosthetic Implant Purchase Prices for Total Knee and Total Hip Arthroplasties

By: Derek A. Haas, Kevin J Bozic, Anthony M. DiGioia, Zirui Song and Robert S. Kaplan

Previous studies have documented wide variation in health-care spending and prices; however, the causes for the variation in supply purchase prices across providers are not well understood. The purpose of this study was to determine the drivers of variation in... View Details

Keywords: Costing; Cost Variation; Total Knee Arthroplasty; Total Hip Arthroplasty; Prosthetic Implant Cost; Health Care and Treatment; Cost Management; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry

December 2007 (Revised July 2009)
Case

Given Imaging Ltd. - First We Take Manhattan, Then We Take Berlin?

GI has developed a revolutionary video pill for imaging the small bowel in the gastro-intestinal tract. The development has required the integration of wide variety of technologies. GI founder and CEO Gabriel Meron must determine GI's marketing strategy and prioritize... View Details

Keywords: Medical Specialties; Globalized Markets and Industries; Decisions; Technological Innovation; Marketing Strategy; Market Entry and Exit; Entrepreneurship; Health Care and Treatment; Corporate Finance; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry; Japan; United States; Europe

September 2008 (Revised March 2020)
Supplement

Medtronic: Patient Management Initiative (B)

By: Regina E. Herzlinger

The (B) case provides the denouement to the (A) case about Medtronic's introduction of the Chronicle and remote monitoring business. View Details

Keywords: Health Care and Treatment; Measurement and Metrics; Information Technology; Competitive Strategy; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry

September 2010 (Revised February 2014)
Case

The Global Sight Initiative

By: Regina E. Herzlinger

How to replicate a 'one of' social entrepreneurship effort: To cure blindness, Seva took the Aravind Eye Hospital & scaled it up to 100 hospitals globally. View Details

Keywords: Social Entrepreneurship; Nonprofit Organizations; Medical Specialties; Health Care and Treatment; Globalization; Health Industry

June 2024
Supplement

Legacy Partners (A)

By: Richard S. Ruback and Royce Yudkoff

Instructors should consider the timing of making videos available to students, as they may reveal key case details.

Stephen Holbrook and Austin Pulsipher (both HBS '19) had been leading Nutrishare since acquiring the company six months earlier in mid-2021.... View Details

16 Jul 2008
Op-Ed

What Should Employers Do about Health Care?

co-pays and deductibles on essential medications for chronic conditions can reduce adherence to therapy, leading to expensive hospitalizations, complications, and the like. Here, so-called consumer-driven health plans not only failed to... View Details

Keywords: by Michael E. Porter, Elizabeth O. Teisberg & Scott Wallace; Health

2009
Working Paper

Broadening Focus: Spillovers, Complementarities and Specialization in the Hospital Industry

By: Jonathan R. Clark and Robert S. Huckman

The long-standing argument that focused operations outperform others stands in contrast to claims about the benefits of broader operational scope. The performance benefits of focus are typically attributed to reduced complexity, lower uncertainty, and the development... View Details

Keywords: Health Care and Treatment; Medical Specialties; Performance Capacity; Diversification; Health Industry

04 May 2007
What Do You Think?

How Do Managers Think?

was a suggestion that while managers might have little to learn from doctors about thinking, there might be more important implications for managers in the ways that doctors are trained. Many similarities were observed between the thinking of View Details

Keywords: by Jim Heskett

March 2011
Teaching Note

PrimedicProviding Primary Care in Mexico (TN)

By: Richard G. Hamermesh

Teaching Note for 811040. View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Health Care and Treatment; Venture Capital; Financing and Loans; Business Model; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry; Mexico

26 Apr 2023
Cold Call Podcast

How Martine Rothblatt Started a Company to Save Her Daughter

Keywords: Re: Debora L. Spar; Medical Devices & Supplies; Medical Devices & Supplies; Medical Devices & Supplies

May 2007 (Revised July 2011)
Case

The West German Headache Center: Integrated Migraine Care

By: Michael E. Porter, Clemens Guth and Elisa M. Dannemiller

Describes the joint efforts of the German health plan KKH and Essen University Hospital to develop an integrated practice unit (IPU), and the West German Headache Center's efforts to improve the quality of migraine care. Provides an overview of the German health care... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Health Care and Treatment; Medical Specialties; Industry Structures; Service Delivery; Integration; Health Industry; Germany