Pay-for-performance programs are apparently not like the Energizer Bunny, according to a new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Although pay-for-performance programs can reduce 30-day mortality rates in their initial phases, within a few years the effect wears off and mortality rates often return to their original levels. Factors specific to individual patients and the communities in which they live also contribute to mortality rates outside of the pay-for-performance parameters. Read the full article at FierceHealthcare