Behind the media headlines that chronicle the successes--as well asthe charges of fraud, abuse, and ethical misconduct--of today'scorporate medical giants lies the story of the Wall Street playerswho are determining the structure of our future health systems.Independent hospitals and clinics, small medical technologycompanies, solo practitioners, and consumers alike acknowledge thatthe big business
principles driving the frenzy of mergers and acquisitions arebringing the long-awaited rewards of accountability andpredictability to the fragmented healthcare industry. But at whatcost?

Sandy Lutz, a renowned medical business reporter and investmentanalyst, and Big Six accounting firm partners Woodrin Grossman andJohn Bigalke provide their insiders' insights into the financialworkings of Wall Street's mighty medical corporations--a class theauthors refer to as Med Incorporated. With an in-depth study of themost notable leader, Columbia/HCA Healthcare Corp., plusillustrative examples of other medical giants, Lutz and hercoauthors demonstrate how these Med Inc. companies excel inmanaging capital, information, risk, and government regulation--thefour key success factors to achieving operational efficiency andmarket dominance. They show how the missions and operations ofinvestor-owned companies compare with their noninvestor-ownedcounterparts and examine how current technological and marketdevelopments will shape the future of health systems.