拉撒德医疗服务领导者研究2026

Services LeadersStudy 2026 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY A Look Back at Lazard’s April 2025Healthcare Services Leaders Study Before sharing the conclusions from our 2026 Healthcare Services Leaders Study, we reflect briefly onthe predictive nature of our prior study. Lazard’s April 2025 study focused on expectations for capitalavailability, catalysts for M&A activity, predictions for private equity exits and the anticipated impact ofthe Trump administration’s policies. A year later, we generally see a correlation between responses fromindustry leaders and the course of subsequent events—with a few exceptions. •In April 2025, nearly all forms of capital were expected to become more available than the prior year withabout 60% of respondents anticipating improved conditions for IPOs and venture capital. Renewedoptimism for the 2025 IPO market was underpinned by a favorable combination of declining interest rates,stabilized market volatility and a backlog of high-quality private companies seeking liquidity after theprolonged market lull of 2023 and 2024. Most respondents believed companies would need over $250million in revenue, strong growth and profitability to successfully IPO. Indeed, several prominenthealthcare services companies went public in 2025, the largest of which was Medline, which raised morethan $6 billion of proceeds and saw its stock rise over 40% on its first trading day. Hinge Health andOmada Health also went public in 2025, highlighting renewed public markets interest in differentiatedhealth tech. •In our 2025 study, 80% of respondents expected the pace of private equity platform acquisitions toincrease, and 60% expected large cap consolidation to become more common over the coming year. Infact, healthcare services private equity deal activity grew approximately 10% in 2025.(1)In last year’sstudy, 82% of respondents predicted that the pace of private equity exits would increase amid intensepressure to distribute capital to limited partners. Consistent with that expectation, private equity exitsincreased by 17% compared to 2024.(1)However, overall US healthcare services M&A deal volume andaggregate value declined by 30% and 20%, respectively,(2)and deal activity remained highly situationaland company-specific. Buyer and seller price expectations remained at odds, with sellers remaininganchored to historical valuations, while buyers prioritized profitability and cash flow quality in a highercost of capital environment. •A year ago, respondents identified healthcare software, mental/behavioral health and home health as thetop strategic priorities for 2025. During 2025, healthcare IT private equity deal value increased byapproximately 24% year-over-year, and mental health and home health deal volume increased by morethan 20% during the same period.(1) •For the second consecutive year, artificial intelligence was cited as the force most likely to transform theindustry over the next 5–10 years. Additionally, 58% and 55% of respondents anticipated that revenuecycle management (“RCM”) and clinical decision support, respectively, would be the areas most ripe fordisruption by AI. Indeed, healthcare services companies are aggressively adopting AI to address risinglabor costs, alleviate administrative burdens and improve cash conversion cycles. In 2025, 80% of healthsystems said they are exploring, piloting or implementing generative AI for RCM. Just two years ago in2023, only 58% of health systems said they were merely considering generative AI for RCM.(3) •In last year’s study, 85% of respondents predicted cuts to Medicaid funding, and 84% expected elevatedMedicare Advantage (“MA”) utilization to persist at least into 2026. This bearish Medicaid outlookmaterialized with the passage of the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” in July 2025, enacting nearly $1 trillion inMedicaid spending cuts over the next decade. Meanwhile, the MA outlook remained challenged, asutilization pressures persisted through year-end. Lazard Healthcare Services Leaders Stud2026 Throughout 2025 and into early 2026, healthcare services companies navigated a volatile macroeconomic,geopolitical and policy landscape. Trade tensions rose precipitously following the implementation ofsweeping universal tariffsin 2025, which drove US import duties to levels not seen since the 1930s. Thisaggressive trade posture spiked market volatility and heightened concerns regarding supply chain inflationand cross-border pharmaceutical activities. A February 2026 Supreme Court ruling striking down many ofthese tariffs has introduced further uncertainty for business leaders. Meanwhile, after holding interest rates steady for much of early 2025, the Federal Reserve (“Fed”) deliveredthree consecutive rate cuts in the latter half of the year, bringing the target range to 3.50%–3.75% byDecember. The Fed had signaled an appetite for marginal further easing in 2026, but the war in Iran and theresulting price surge on commodities sourced from the Persian Gulf raise