Did you hear this story?
Yesterday NPR ran a story that opened, “Politicians in Washington may disagree about a lot in the health care overhaul, but pretty much everyone agrees that costs have to come down. . . . One proposal is for physicians to form what are called Accountable Care Organizations or ACOs” host Michele Norris.
(A timely reminder: In the mid1970s, we embraced Health Management Organizations, or HMOs, as the way toward better patient care and reduced medical expenses. The explanation was that through proper management and associations, doctors could provide more and better care that would, because it aimed at being preventive, reduce the large expenses associated with disease and illness.)
Without qualification, because his statement is a blanket assessment of all methods of health care cost containment, “nonpartisan” expert Randy Brown, of Mathematica, says, “If you’re going to cut costs, the spending pie has to shrink. And that means somebody is goin to make a lot less money. And there’s no discussion about who that’s going to be. . . . Who’s going to take that hit?”
Mr. Brown is correct. Cutting costs means cutting costs (either services or reimbursement, or both). But nowhere in this 1400 word story are the words “fraud,” “abuse,” or “waste” used. If one looks at the “spending pie,” and sees some combination of fraud, abuse, and waste equals somewhere between 20% and 60% (see my posts on fraud and costs), why wouldn’t that be the piece of the pie that should take the hit?
Where was NPR reporter Sarah Varney? Where were her editors? Where was host Michele Norris?
The consummate professional, Sarah Varney ends on an upbeat note: "Congressional leaders and health system reformers, though, are optimistic there are enough incentives in the bills for physicians to at least give it a try."
Yesterday NPR ran a story that opened, “Politicians in Washington may disagree about a lot in the health care overhaul, but pretty much everyone agrees that costs have to come down. . . . One proposal is for physicians to form what are called Accountable Care Organizations or ACOs” host Michele Norris.
(A timely reminder: In the mid1970s, we embraced Health Management Organizations, or HMOs, as the way toward better patient care and reduced medical expenses. The explanation was that through proper management and associations, doctors could provide more and better care that would, because it aimed at being preventive, reduce the large expenses associated with disease and illness.)
Without qualification, because his statement is a blanket assessment of all methods of health care cost containment, “nonpartisan” expert Randy Brown, of Mathematica, says, “If you’re going to cut costs, the spending pie has to shrink. And that means somebody is goin to make a lot less money. And there’s no discussion about who that’s going to be. . . . Who’s going to take that hit?”
Mr. Brown is correct. Cutting costs means cutting costs (either services or reimbursement, or both). But nowhere in this 1400 word story are the words “fraud,” “abuse,” or “waste” used. If one looks at the “spending pie,” and sees some combination of fraud, abuse, and waste equals somewhere between 20% and 60% (see my posts on fraud and costs), why wouldn’t that be the piece of the pie that should take the hit?
Where was NPR reporter Sarah Varney? Where were her editors? Where was host Michele Norris?
The consummate professional, Sarah Varney ends on an upbeat note: "Congressional leaders and health system reformers, though, are optimistic there are enough incentives in the bills for physicians to at least give it a try."
Congress Proposes New Physician Payment System
NPR, All Things Considered, 01.04.10, "Congress Proposes New Physician Payment System" reporter Sarah Varney, host Michele Norris.
http://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=122217323
http://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=122217323
No comments:
Post a Comment