In a Medical Economics piece, Lori Rousche, M.D., writes about the tricky task of dividing quality bonus payments in physician groups as they head deeper into the brave new world of reimbursements based on quality and outcomes rather than on the number of procedures.
She concludes:
“If we are going to survive going forward with the changes in payments from all of our insurers, we must stand as one group all together for the common good of providing quality care. In the next quarter, when the bonus check is dispersed, it could be my office that scores zero on utilization, even though I am doing my best at trying to keep my patients well.
“In the end, we voted to divide the utilization bonus evenly among all of the offices according to full time equivalents because that was the fair thing to do. And it was the right thing to do even though there was some grumbling about it. I believe it strengthens our group and our partnership heading forward into the messy future of medicine.”
To read her entire piece, please hit this link.