The need to rethink healthcare delivery is becoming increasingly urgent. The United States now spends more than $5 trillion annually on healthcare, while it is projected that $1 trillion in annual healthcare spending will shift over the next decade toward more personalized, digital, and community-based models of care. To me, that shift reflects a growing recognition that improving access may be just as important as developing the next breakthrough.

For too many patients, the greatest barrier to better care is not science. It is geography.

Across the United States, specialized healthcare remains concentrated within major hospitals and metropolitan medical centers. If you live in or near one of those areas, you are far more likely to have access to advanced treatments, experienced specialists, and modern medical technologies. Move farther away from those urban centers, however, and that access often becomes far less certain. The distance between where patients live and where care is available continues to shape healthcare outcomes more than many people realize.

This gap is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore as hospitals across rural America continue facing financial pressure. The result is not simply fewer buildings. There are fewer opportunities for communities to receive timely care close to home. Patients travel farther, appointments become more difficult to schedule, and local physicians often have fewer tools available to support the people they serve. We often celebrate the next medical breakthrough as though discovery alone changes lives. It does not. A treatment only creates a meaningful impact when patients can realistically receive it.

A survey suggests that many healthcare leaders recognize the need for change. More than 70% of health system executives surveyed identified improving operational efficiency and productivity as a top priority, while nearly 90% expect expanded........

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