Hospitals in pursuit of excellence

Improving Care for High-Need, High-Cost Patients

As a new generation of payment and delivery system reform emerges, much focus has been on a subset of the population referred to as high-need, high-cost patients. These patients are defined as adults who have three or more chronic diseases and functional limitations in their ability to care for themselves or perform routine daily tasks. They account for a disproportionate share of the nation’s disease and health care spending.

Hospitals and health systems are leading interventions to address the needs of high-need, high-cost patients. This issue brief provides an overview, strategies and resources to help hospitals improve care for high-need, high-cost patients.