Legislators wanted to know what McKinsey did to earn monthly fees of roughly $1 million. Or in the lingo of consultants, what were the “deliverables”? Harris, looking over documents at a hearing, saw something that troubled him. “Every month they repeat the same deliverables. So why is this the same without variation?” Harris asked. “I think that’s a logical question.”

“It is,” Norwood replied.

Harris said some deliverables appeared vague, such as helping support and prepare leadership “for provider engagement sessions at appropriate cadence to be defined.” At this point, some people began to laugh, he said.

“Do we have a cadence defined?” Harris asked with a touch of sarcasm.

To increase its visibility, McKinsey set up the Center for U.S. Health System Reform “to track and model the impact of regulatory change on market and consumer dynamics.” The center is unambiguous about its target audience. “We support investors—including strategic buyers and private equity—to understand opportunities emerging from the latest legislative and regulatory reform trends [and] identify attractive investment areas and assets across the healthcare value chain.”