Commentary
ROUND OF 4 AND CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS: CONSUMERS, ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND A GOLIATH DUKE IT OUT
Welcome to the finals!
Two macrotrends – patient control and artificial intelligence (AI) – have firmly colonized this tournament. The storms around these macrotrends have been brewing for several years, making steady advances from multiple directions and now proving that they aren’t fleeting trends but true sculptors of healthcare business. In 2023, the patient voice emerged in a few articulate but few loosely formed teams. Last year, it became a true competitor (“by far the largest payor,” said one Committee member), and this year in the Access & Capacity trend, it’s holding ground in the Round of 4. AI is fast on the heels of consumer-forward trends, having bubbled up in multiple teams over the years but never having made it this far, as AI’s Resurgent Debut arrives full of promise on behalf of the Technology region.
On the other side of the bracket, Make America Healthy Again, despite its rookie status, reflects the broad impact of the Trump administration on anything that catches its eye. This 800-pound gorilla is dominating every court it plays on, from easy early wins to inexplicable triumphs from tougher challenges in later rounds. The Medicare Advantage (MA) franchise, this year represented by Medicare Advantage Doubles Down, is consistently a force in the March Healthcare Classic and has now advanced three times to the Top Four and twice made it to the Championship.
So here we are at another electrifying Top Four with one veteran, one greenhorn and two teams in between. Let’s go!
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THE CHAMPIONSHIP PLAYOFF: WILL POLITICS AFFECT THE GAME?
Make America Healthy Again Smacks Down Access and Capacity
The Healthcare Landscape sends up another Top Four victor against the Care Delivery champ – both two-seeded teams but one with the seemingly bulletproof coating of the Trump administration. Access & Capacity (2), called by many as the most critical issue affecting healthcare, came into this contest without the loss of a single vote. Lack of access has become a rallying cry; indeed, it has incited extreme and terrifying responses from patients in 2025.
However, with so many initiatives aligned with Trump and his appointees, Make America Healthy Again (2) just kept going. Even though it didn’t have a perfect record, it was perfectly unstoppable. As the administration rolls out its priorities and dramatic changes, this trend could very well impact healthcare in ways that administrations have never been able to do before. It also could die on the vine – but that’s a question for the Championship!
For now, congratulations to Make America Healthy Again for moving on to the final!
AI’s Resurgent Debut Tramples Medicare Advantage Doubles Down
It’s a sad day for MA, which expected 2025 to be its victory year. It’s big, and it’s powerful, but a lack of agility always seems to hamstring this trend. With the support of 34 million enrollees and more than half of all Medicare beneficiaries, we can expect this team to take another crack at the trophy for many tournaments to come. But for now, we say to Medicare Advantage Doubles Down (2), “Same time next year?”
What may have tipped the scales against Medicare Advantage Doubles Down was its easy win coming into the Top Four. It may have arrived a bit complacent, whereas AI’s Resurgent Debut (1) had just emerged victorious from a double overtime wrestling match to survive the Technology region’s playoff game. The confidence-building, adrenaline-laced effect of that win could have enabled them to take down their larger, more experienced opponent. Now that they have cracked the seal, we don’t expect this team to retreat any time soon, or ever.
As the first AI trend ever to make it into the Top Four, we welcome AI’s Resurgent Debut to the Championship!
THE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME: MAKE AMERICA HEALTHY AGAIN IS LION, HEAR IT ROAR
It all comes down to this. On one side, a technology that—in a relatively short time—has reorganized industries, replaced jobs, and created billionaires. On the other, a trend backed by a high level of presidential influence and a strong vision from the executive branch. A one and a two seed that were both expected to go far, these teams did not disappoint. It is cliché to refer to the relentless change in healthcare, but now even the kind of change we are seeing is shifting. Revolutions on the inside are being matched by upheaval on the outside, and there truly is no end in sight for the rapid evolution of our industry. This is a very exciting Championship matchup that shows just how ripe healthcare is for transformation!
The game looked good for Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) in the first half, with the Committee conceding healthcare’s rocky relationship with leading-edge technology and the in-our-face MAHA movement that may have more immediate effects. MAHA razzle-dazzled with impressive ball handling and truly magical pump-fakes that even AI didn’t see coming.
However, AI did decode many of MAHA’s plays, and in the second half, AI’s Resurgent Debut answered with a vengeance, matching its opponent point for point. One Committee member said that unlike MAHA, AI is not confined by politics. Another expressed the belief that for healthcare, AI is one of those technologies that leaps over generations of non-investment because it doesn’t have to build on technical debt.
“I DON’T HAVE AS MUCH CONFIDENCE THAT THIS ADMINISTRATION’S POLICIES WILL BE MORE THAN TRANSITORY. AI WILL TRANSCEND POLITICAL BOUNDARIES.”
Tied at the end of regulation play, this heavyweight brawl went into overtime as both teams refused to back down, possession after possession, in an age-old horns-locking of politics and progress. In a lucky break for MAHA, AI’s Resurgent Debut bobbled the ball, opening an opportunity for MAHA to snag a tie-breaking bucket that pushed them to victory and Championship history.
“THE SWEEPING AND DRAMATIC CHANGE FROM THIS ADMINISTRATION WILL NOT BE SOMETHING THE INDUSTRY CAN TURN AWAY FROM THIS YEAR.”
As for the future of AI, the Committee agreed that it has positioned itself well for ongoing impact on healthcare. The myriad ways in which AI is shaping healthcare essentially guarantee that in one form or another, this trend has secured its place as a tournament legacy team. However, in a year when change directed by the Trump administration stands to upend not just healthcare but multiple industries, AI will have to bide its time at least one more year.
Congratulations, Make America Healthy Again, on winning the March Healthcare Classic!
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