Intense Competition and Rising Costs Dominate Cleveland's Health Care Market

Publication Date: January 2003

Publisher: Center for Studying Health System Change

Author(s): Suzanne Felt-Lisk; Jon B. Christianson; Linda R. Brewster; Ashley C. Short

Research Area: Health

Type: Report

Coverage: Ohio

Abstract:

In September 2002, a team of researchers visited Cleveland to study that community's health system, how it is changing and the effects of those changes on consumers. The Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC), as part of the Community Tracking Study, inter-viewed more than 100 leaders in the health care market. Cleveland is one of 12 communities tracked by HSC every two years through site visits and every three years through surveys. Individual community reports are published for each round of site visits. The first three site visits to Cleveland, in 1996, 1998 and 2000, provided baseline and initial trend information against which changes are tracked. The Cleveland market includes Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lorain and Medina counties.