Fierce Price Competition Research Articles

The Essential Guide to Group Practice in Mental Health: Clinical, Legal, and Financial Fundamentals

Back to table of contents Previous article Next article Book ReviewFull AccessThe Essential Guide to Group Practice in Mental Health: Clinical, Legal, and Financial FundamentalsJay M. Pomerantz, M.D.Jay M. PomerantzSearch for more papers by this author, M.D.Published Online:1 Nov 1998https://doi.org/10.1176/ps.49.11.1501AboutSectionsView EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail This book will have a place on my desk close to DSM-IV and the Physicians' Desk Reference; it is that useful for clinical practice in the late 1990s. Just as the other two books have periodic updates, I expect this guide to group practice to have future editions.These sentiments come not from a newcomer to mental health group practice, but from someone actively involved in a large multidisciplinary group (within a larger, multispecialty organization) doing at-risk contracting for the past seven years. The value of the book to a clinician just starting out in group practice, small or large, incorporated or not, is potentially much greater.The theme of this book is "collaboration." The authors have scanned the literature and talked with leaders of various successful group practices to find out the administrative and clinical methods that foster collaboration. The use of a "collaborative cube" to represent the three important axes of an organization—scope, integration, and governance—is innovative and useful. The book contains detailed information on legal structures, business plans and budgets, financing, ways to collect appropriate clinical and financial data to facilitate management, bidding on at-risk contracts, and employing consultants.A major and very thoughtful section of the book deals with designing collaborative clinical services. That is the part of the book that gets it on my desk. The ideas of time-effective treatment, parsimony, and the life-span developmental model are not new, but somehow seem especially clear in this chapter. I also appreciate and want to have close by me Dr. Steenbarger's field interviews with various leaders of successful collaborative models. Fortunately, there is no attempt to gloss over problems.My only criticism of the book is that it does not sufficiently warn mental health professionals about accepting a separate path for themselves. Recent history reveals neglected and underfunded separate state hospitals for mental patients. Likewise, the current behavioral health carve-out phenomenon, featuring both separation of service delivery and fierce price competition, has resulted in a decline in the percentage of the health care dollar devoted to behavioral health—10 to 12 percent under indemnity insurance versus a current 3 to 4 percent under managed care. The introduction of subcapitation for competing mental health groups, detailed in the book, may provide even fewer behavioral health dollars.What will be left for patients and providers? In any future edition of the book, Budman and Steenbarger might include a section that discusses and illustrates strategies to avoid carve-outs of behavioral health. Can local, collaborating mental health professionals operate under a budget within physician hospital organizations, provider sponsored organizations, multispecialty independent practice associations, and health maintenance organizations? Will such local, integrated arrangements forestall the continuing downward spiral in money for behavioral health? Even more to the point, how does one facilitate clinical collaboration within multispecialty "supergroups" to ensure optimal, cost-effective care of the psyche and the soma?Budman and Steenbarger's book is helpful, whether one takes the direction they recommend or another route to collaborative practice. The Essential Guide to Group Practice in Mental Health is must reading for anyone who subscribes to Psychiatric Services.Dr. Pomerantz is in private practice in Longmeadow, Massachusetts, and is a lecturer in psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.by Simon H. Budman and Brett N. Steenbarger; New York City, Guilford Press, 1997, 318 pages, $45 FiguresReferencesCited byDetailsCited byNone Volume 49Issue 11 November 1998Pages 1501-1501 Metrics History Published online 1 November 1998 Published in print 1 November 1998

Structural Change in the European Package Tour Industry: UK/German Comparisons

This paper analyses the development of the European package tour market paying particular attention to the two major package tour markets in Europe, the UK and Germany. It shows how both markets show high concentration with the top three firms supplying over half the market. Despite this similarity in market structure, UK and German package tour operators show great differences in conduct and performance. Whereas the UK market is characterized by fierce price competition, low profit margins, and high rates of entry and exit, the German market has none of these characteristics. It is argued that the UK market is a contestable market in Baumol's terms whereas the German market is a stable oligopoly. The competitiveness of the UK market has led firms to concentrate on the home market to protect market share. The oligopolistic nature of the German market has prevented more growth for German firms in their home market and has led to expansion into other European markets. These points are highlighted by an analysis of data from the FVW International survey of European tour operators for the period 1988–1993.

Network liberalization and developing countries: The case of Chile

The opening of Chile's telecommunications infrastructure to private and foreign investment has led to a rapid modernization of the network and to improvements in universal service. In 1994 all remaining regulatory entry barriers to the local, long-distance and international markets were removed for both service providers and network operators. Full digitization of switches and specific characteristics of the Chilean network structure have led to fierce price competition in the market. In spite of the small market size the strategic behaviour of the main market players is unlikely to succeed. As a result the market is likely to remain highly competitive. While the liberalization process has so far spurred the universal service goal, further improvements will mainly depend on whether entry takes place in the local market.

Biggest is Best? Strategic Assumptions and Actions in the Canadian Audit Industry

AbstractThe paper examines the stated reasons for recent mergers between members of the (former) Big Eight accounting firms. The reasons are expressed in terms of hypotheses about the perceived advantages of very large size and the hypotheses are tested using 1986‐9 data from the top 1000 Canadian companies. The focus of the paper is thus on the link between perceptions, merger behaviour, and the history and trends of the audit industry.RésuméCet article examine les raisons invoquées pour les fusions récentes entre les membres des (autrefois) grosses huit maisons de comptabilité. Les raisons sont énoncées en termes hypothètiques des avantages perçu de la grosseur; les hypothèses sont examinées utilisant les statistiques de 1986‐9 des 1000 plus grosses compagnies canadiennes. Cet article se concentre sur les liens entre les perceptions, la fusion conduite, l'histoire et les orientations de l'industrie de vérification.

Price‐matching policies: An empirical case

AbstractPromises by retailers to match the prices of their competitors give an impression of fierce price competition. These policies, however, may deter rivals from cutting prices because the threat of price matching makes it more likely that market share will not be gained. This paper empirically tests these two conflicting theories using data collected from grocery stores in a market where several stores had announced that they would match the prices of the low‐price supermarket. The evidence supports the theory that price‐matching policies help supermarkets avoid price competition and therefore lead to generally higher prices.

Distributor pricing in very competitive markets

There is a high probability of fierce price competition in depressed markets where multiple suppliers are marketing relatively undifferentiated product offerings. In such circumstances effective pricing is a paramount necessity. This article discusses findings on pricing practices by industrial distributors operating in these types of conditions. It found substantial downward price flexibility, extensive discounting, and widespread price competition. Other results discussed relate to pricing objectives, methods, and influences. A range of recommendations is offered

Recent Developments in Transition Metal Catalyzed Olefin Polymerization–A Survey. I. Ethylene Polymerization

Abstract High density polyethylene (HDPE) is a major commodity thermoplastic used for a variety of applications such as blow molding, injection molding, and pipe and tubing. This remarkable polymer has been manufactured since the early 1950s, but because of its industrial importance, the production of HDPE continues to be a very active area of technology. In recent years, the worldwide recession, reduced and varying demand, overcapacity, and fierce price competition has stimulated polyolefin manufacturers to modify their existing facilities, making it feasible to interchangeably manufacture a variety of resins. New improved catalysts and processes have been developed to produce HDPE of desired properties at lower manufacturing cost.

Het beleid inzake de staalnijverheid in België en Europa

The european steel crisis is due to the steel production overcapacity in regard of a decline in demand, leading to a fierce price competition, with prices 15 to 20 % lower than in the USA and Japan. Measures were taken by the Commission of the European Communities and by the steel companies, consisting of imposing or proposing selling prices, limiting the deliveries, reducing import from third countries, closing down obsolete capacities, increasing productivity. Moreover, most governments have granted financial aid.In the second half of 1980, the market situation has deteriorated rapidly, which fact has led the Council of the European Communities to adopt Art. 58 of the ECSC-Treaty and to set obligatory production quotas. This has proved not to be sufficient. There is a strong tendency within the Commission towards a drastic reduction of overcapacity,as well as a decrease in state aid, the latter being considered as only allowed temporarily as a means of achieving the necessary restructuring and capacity reduction.It can be expected that, given the dramatic market situation, these measures wilt effectively be put into practice in the period to come. At the same time, voluntary agreements concerning production and prices are being discussed among steel producers (Eurofer 2).