The nonprofit Network for Regional Healthcare Improvement (NRHI) has issued a report titled “From Volume to Value: Transforming Health Care Payment and Delivery Systems to Improve Quality and Reduce Costs.” The report urges fixes that could save billions of dollars and make expanding health insurance to the uninsured more affordable.
A summit of more than 100 leaders from across the country--doctors, hospitals, insurers, academics, foundations, government, regional healthcare collaboratives, and others--generated the recommendations. All endorse a profound transformation in the way hospitals, doctors, and other health care professionals are paid.
According to the report, our healthcare payment system is built to reward the quantity, not the quality, of treatment. This payment system penalizes doctors and hospitals financially for eliminating unnecessary tests and treatments, preventing infections, and keeping people healthy. The report recommends that insurers pay doctors and hospitals a single amount that covers all the services a patient needs instead of separate fees for each service. Moreover, insurers should change the system from paying more to correct errors and preventable complications to rewarding healthcare providers for successfully treating patients.
Read the report.
