Radio Advisory 267: Care variation reduction: A $100B opportunity
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Sep 23, 2025 Isis Monteiro, a provider operations expert at Advisory Board, dives into the untapped potential of care variation reduction (CVR) — a colossal $100 billion opportunity for health systems. She highlights common barriers like clinician buy-in and data trust that hinder progress. Monteiro also outlines strategies for engaging clinicians and standardizing care, plus practical paths for implementing CVR. The discussion is rich with insights on optimizing existing strategies for improved operational efficiency.
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Big National Savings From Standardization
- Unwarranted care variation creates substantial inefficiency and excess cost across health systems.
- Advisory Board estimates a $100 billion annual national savings opportunity if CVR is done at scale.
Local Pilots Won't Deliver System Savings
- Most organizations run CVR efforts locally by facility or service line rather than at the system level.
- Localized efforts won't generate the scale needed to realize major cost or length-of-stay reductions.
Benchmark Granular Opportunities First
- Use a CVR assessment tool to benchmark excess cost and excess length of stay across facilities and clinicians.
- Prioritize opportunities by facility, service line, MSDRG, or physician to target the biggest actionable wins.