Here's How Millennials Could Change Health Care

Changing the game: 'We're the instant gratication generation.'

With a presidential election fast approaching, healthcare is an issue that’s getting plenty of traction on both sides of the political aisle. For Republicans, taking down President Obama’s signature Affordable Care Act remains a red meat issue. Republican presidential candidates are also trotting out an ACA repeal as a key incentive for voting a member of the party into the Oval Office. Healthcare has been a key issue in the Democratic debates as well, with Hillary Clinton pushing back on rival Bernie Sanders’ plan for universal health care.

Amid all the debate, however, one group could prove to be the wild card. As more millennials interact with the healthcare system, the industry will find itself facing a more sophisticated and demanding group that won’t stand for its inefficiencies with the same begrudging acceptance of previous generations, said Kathy Hempstead, director of insurance coverage for the Robert Woods Johnson Foundation.

“Older people have sort of gotten used to interacting with healthcare providers in certain ways, even though the rest of the service sector has made all these improvements in customer service while the healthcare industry hasn’t,” Hempstead said. “I think millennials are going to give the healthcare industry more impetus to really improve the customer service part of what they do.”...