A few years ago, I wrote about a novel experiment in California that used reference prices to encourage CalPERS beneficiaries to choose lower-cost, high-quality facilities when seeking joint replacement. One experiment capped the price CalPERS was willing to pay for joint replacement at $30,000. Patients could seek care at any provider, but they would be responsible for all charges above the reference price. In addition, CalPERS gave beneficiaries a list of high-quality hospitals that would perform the surgery for $30,000. The result after two years was that patients shifted to the lower-cost hospitals. High-cost hospitals began matching prices for CalPERS patients.
Author: Devon Herrick
Steps to Scrutinize a Medical Bill
A Chicago physician took a nasty spill while skiing in Wisconsin, resulting in a trip to the emergency room on New Years Day. Then came the bill, which was a nasty surprise. The $10,563.49 in initial ER charges from a Froedtert South hospital in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin, seemed high considering he basically got only an exam,…
Union CA Ballot Initiative would Harm Patients it Purports to Protect
For the third time in five years the Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West is sponsoring a ballot initiative to impose strict regulations on dialysis centers in California. The union has tried and failed to organize dialysis workers in the past. This initiative seeming has nothing directly about unionizing workers but that is assumed to be the goal. California has 650 dialysis facilities serving 80,000 patients:
Dr. Bryan Wong is a Bay Area nephrologist… and other opponents of the measure have said Proposition 29 is less about what’s written on the ballot and more about an underlying effort by SEIU-UHW to organize dialysis clinic workers.
Your Hospital, Health Plan and Possibly Your Doctor are Conspiring Against You
I’ve told this story a million times. A few years ago my wife saw her doctor for a recurring problem. It was something so common her doctor should have known off the top of her head what the problem was. Instead, her doctor strung my wife along for numerous appointments and tests. Perhaps it was…