A new study has concluded that paying physicians a cash reward to cut hospital spending cuts costs without harming care quality or access. Some policymakers have raised concerns that such programs would encourage physicians to avoid patients with health problems, but that didn't seem to be the case in this study, researchers said. 

The study, which looked at 220,000 over five years, compared six cardiac cath labs that implemented gainsharing with 123 labs that didn't. Researchers found that gainsharing cut hospital costs by 7.4 percent, or $315 per patient, most of which came from lower prices for coronary stents. This suggests that nationwide use of gainsharing could cut hospital costs for coronary stent patients by roughly $195 million a year, researchers concluded.

To learn more about the study:
- read this HealthDay News item [1]
- read this Modern Healthcare article [2] (reg. req.)

Related Articles:
CMS seeks rural hospitals for gainsharing program [2]
HHS advisories give guidance on doctor gainsharing [2]
HHS OKs hospital/physician gainsharing [2]