iFranchise Group Authors Whitepaper on Franchising in the Healthcare Professions

By: iFranchise Group | 20 Shares 101 Reads

Experts Predicting Franchise Boom In The Healthcare Industry

July 25, 2013 // Franchising.com // HOMEWOOD, IL - Franchise consulting firm iFranchise Group, in a recently released whitepaper, predicts that current and ongoing changes in the healthcare industry will lead to a boom in franchising in this dynamic market sector. iFranchise Group expects the number of franchises in the healthcare segment to double over the next five years.

Franchising experts have already noticed an increased acceptance of franchising as a growth vehicle within the medical and healthcare professions. Now, given the fast?changing healthcare marketplace, franchising is becoming an increasingly viable solution to meet today's and tomorrow's industry issues, with the net effect of benefitting patients, clients, and professionals alike.

Franchising is not new to the healthcare industry, with numerous health and wellness franchises and other similar concepts already expanding nationwide. Mark Siebert, CEO of the iFranchise Group and noted franchise consultant, foresees some positive, perhaps unintended, consequences of the Affordable Care Act, in particular, within the medical field: "We are expecting to see a significant increase in the number of new franchisors entering the marketplace as businesses look to grow while managing the more complex provisions of the Act," he said. "For example, since franchisees are independent contractors, the employees they add do not count toward the 50-employee threshold, which triggers additional provisions under the new healthcare act."

Based on the number of calls the franchise consulting firm has been receiving from health-related companies interested in franchise development, Siebert added, "If healthcare is, indeed, available to more people under the new law, more people will presumably seek treatment, thus spurring more business through the healthcare industry. At the same time, many medical professionals are being squeezed by insurance companies - forcing them to look for alternatives to careers that often look more like assembly lines than medical practices."

Siebert also added, "Healthcare franchisors that have developed systems to address these industry changes are going to be very attractive to medical professionals looking for a change. And best practices that improve a physician's financial future or quality of life will be in high demand."

This does not mean that franchising a healthcare business is a simple proposition. Given the various laws in place that affect medical and other related franchises - from those prohibiting the corporate practice of medicine, to HIPAA regulations, to franchise law in general - it is more important than ever for current and future franchisors to align themselves with both business and legal consultants who can help them make the proper decisions related to the structuring and documentation of a healthcare franchise.

To provide some initial guidance on the topic, iFranchise Group has authored a whitepaper on the subject of franchising in the healthcare industry. A copy of the whitepaper, "Franchising: A Business Expansion Solution for the Healthcare Profession" may be requested directly at the following link: http://www.ifranchisegroup.com/franchising-in-the-health-care-profession/.

For further information, contact iFranchise Group at info@ifranchisegroup.com or 708-957-2300.

About iFranchise Group:

iFranchise Group (www.ifranchisegroup.com), is a leading franchise consulting firm that offers the skills of the nation's top professionals in franchise strategic planning, operations training and documentation, franchise marketing and sales, advertising fund management, franchise recruitment, and development of Internet-based applications for emerging and established franchise companies worldwide. Within the health and medical industry our consultants have worked with concepts in urgent care, home healthcare, dentistry, pharmacy, weight loss, nutrition, massage, and optometry.

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