Saving Money by Bundling Care

A few months ago my a member of my family had 3 extended stays in the hospital. I had Appendicitis in graduate school, so I had a scene of how messed up the medical billing system had become. But I was not prepared for the sheer number of bills for doctors, specialists, sub contractors, hospitals, laps, other tabs that were the result of nearly a month in the hospital.

One of the things that have lead to the increased cost of medical care in the United States has been the overhead realated to record keeping and billing. A new pilot program by Department of Health and Human Services aims at streamlining this process. This program will offer "bundled" care. Patents would pay a single flat fee that would cover for an episode of treatment. From kaiserhealthnews.org

On Tuesday, the Department of Health and Human Services unveiled a Medicare pilot program that will pay participating hospitals, doctors and other health providers one, “bundled,” payment to treat a patient for a single episode of care. The program starts in 2012. To participate, providers will have to bid less, in total, than what Medicare would pay each provider separately. The traditional Medicare program pays each hospital and doctor a separate fee for its services, which critics say leads to uncoordinated care and incentives to drive up Medicare bills.

By reducing inefficiencies and waste, health care organizations will be able to reduce the cost of providing care.

Until Next Time,
Mike
Healthcare Software