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Medicare: Per Capita Method Can Be Used to Profile Physicians and Provide Feedback on Resource Use

GAO-09-802 Published: Sep 25, 2009. Publicly Released: Oct 26, 2009.
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Highlights

The Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 directed the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop a program to give physicians confidential feedback on the Medicare resources used to provide care to Medicare beneficiaries. GAO was asked to evaluate the per capita methodology for profiling physicians--a method which measures a patient's resource use over a fixed period of time and attributes that resource use to physicians--in order to assist the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) with the development of a physician feedback approach. In response, this report examines (1) the extent to which physicians in selected specialties show stable practice patterns and how beneficiary utilization of services varies by physician resource use level; (2) factors to consider in developing feedback reports on physicians' performance, including per capita resource use; and (3) the extent to which feedback reports may influence physician behavior. GAO focused on four medical specialties and four metropolitan areas chosen for their geographic diversity and range in average Medicare spending per beneficiary. To identify considerations for developing a physician feedback system, GAO reviewed the literature and interviewed officials from health plans and specialty societies. Further, GAO drew upon literature and interviews to develop an illustration of how per capita measures could be included in a physician feedback report.

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BeneficiariesDisease detection or diagnosisHealth care personnelHealth care programsHealth care servicesHealth resources utilizationHospital care servicesMedical expense claimsMedical feesMedicarePatient care servicesPhysiciansPrices and pricingReporting requirementsFee-for-service plansTransparency