Healthcare Compliance Trends of the Past and Future

It’s a new year but we’re still focused on the same thing: Effective compliance. You too can show dominance in the world of compliance by staying one step ahead for 2019.

Compliance programs are no longer just “nice to have.” Data show that they’re the norm and an effective program is the gold standard in organizations of all shapes and sizes. And nobody is more excited about it than yours truly. As a compliance expert very few things make me happier than seeing numbers that reflect just how serious healthcare organizations across the nation are taking compliance.

Compliance: It’s All in the Annual Industry Data

In our annual survey, we’ve found that every year more and more organizations have a formal compliance program in place. In the survey conducted last year, 92% of respondents said their organization had a formal compliance program. That number is up 3% from the previous year, and up 8% from two years ago. Organizations without a formal plan in place, only 8%, are now in a very small and shrinking minority. As they should be! [Insert maniacal laughter here]

The survey also shows that existing compliance programs are becoming more and more foundational in healthcare organizations. 92% of programs are either increasing their budgets or staying the same while only 8% of programs’ budgets are shrinking this next year. 76% of respondents review and/or update their policies annually.

Documented policies and procedures are a key component of any effective compliance program. However, the policies lose their effectiveness if left on a shelf to gather dust. That said, according to the survey, only 24% of organizations are neglecting their documented policies and procedures.

Compliance has come a long way from what was once viewed as a program to go above and beyond to a crucial program in the healthcare industry.

If you'd like to read a deeper dive into these statistics and my predictions, you can download my latest free eBrief, “How Compliance Will Continue to Thrive in 2019,” by clicking the button below: