The majority of employers (and employees) agree that health care inflation and and subsequent cost shifting in employee benefits is unsustainable.  You may have heard the stats: Health care accounts for almost 18 percent of the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP), and one-third of all spending is wasteful spending from an inefficient system. 

David Blumenthal, executive director of the nonprofit Commonwealth Fund, made an interesting analogy when he stated, "If the health care system were to break off from the United States and become its own economy, it would be the fifth largest in the world. It would be bigger than the United Kingdom or France and only behind the United States, China, Japan and Germany." 

At first, that stat might sound dreadful; however, that also means there is a huge opportunity to revolutionize the industry by turning these challenges into opportunities and strengths. We cannot afford an evolution from the past, but must truly transform the industry through revolutionary innovation and value.  Think about the impact that companies like Amazon, Netflix, and Apple have had on their respective industries.  These companies created disruptive innovation that disintermediated many competitors who were stuck trying to evolve from past precedent (have you been to a Blockbuster video store lately?).