More than half of doctors across the Asia-Pacific region are more interested in payment models tied to patient outcomes than they were two years ago, but fewer than a third say their hospitals have implemented them. This disconnect exposes gaps in data, treatment standards, and reporting systems. The findings come from Bain & Company’s 2026 Asia-Pacific survey, which polled 600 doctors in Australia and the Philippines and 6,300 consumers across nine markets.
Bain & Company reported that the Asia-Pacific region accounts for 60% of the world’s population but only 22% of global healthcare spending. Value-based care ties healthcare payments to patient outcomes rather than the number of services provided. Hospitals need standard treatment procedures and reliable data before taking greater financial responsibility for those outcomes, the firm stated.
Doctors are specific about what would move them: evidence-based treatment protocols, more reliable data systems, and a lower reporting burden. The survey highlights a clear desire among medical professionals for a shift away from traditional fee-for-service models. However, the infrastructure required to support these new models is often missing.
The challenge is not uniform across the region. China’s experience shows what payment reform can achieve. A study published in BMC Health Services Research in April found that hospitals using diagnosis-related group payment, which pays based on a patient’s condition rather than each service provided, cut hospitalisation costs by more than 19%. The study found no significant change in readmission or mortality rates, meaning lower costs did not coincide with changes in those measures.
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Singapore faces a different challenge. A March analysis in the International Journal of Integrated Care found that smaller clinics adopting fixed payments per patient under Healthier SG faced difficulties managing financial risk because of their limited scale and resources. These providers struggle with the financial exposure inherent in outcome-based models, which can be unpredictable without a large patient base to spread the risk across.
Bain & Company suggested that providers should standardise treatment before taking greater financial risk for patient outcomes. Payers and hospitals also need common outcome measures, connected data systems, and simpler reporting requirements. Without these elements, the shift to value-based care remains theoretical rather than practical.
While the medical community appears ready for payment models that reward better outcomes, the physical and administrative framework of many institutions is lagging behind. The path forward requires building the digital and procedural backbone of healthcare systems before the financial incentives can be fully realized.