Top

Published in:

01-07-2018 | Editorial

It Is Time to Liberate Hospitals from Profit-Centered Care

Authors: Sidney M. Wolfe, M.D., Steffie Woolhandler, M.D., M.P.H., David U. Himmelstein, M.D.

Published in: Journal of General Internal Medicine | Issue 7/2018

Excerpt

The way we pay hospitals is toxic. It rewards, indeed requires, bad behavior from hospital leaders and stifles the better angels of their nature. …

Ly DP, Cutler DM. Factors of U.S. hospitals associated with improved profit margins: An observational study. JGIM 2018; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-018-4347-4.CrossRef

MedPAC. Report to the Congress: Medicare payment policy. Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, Washington: March 15, 2017. Available at: http://www.medpac.gov/docs/default-source/reports/mar17_entirereport224610adfa9c665e80adff00009edf9c.pdf?sfvrsn=0 (access 2/17/2018).

Stevens R. In sickness and in wealth: American hospitals in the twentieth century. New York: Basic Books, 1989.

Brown JB with Thomas SR and members of the Harvard University Health Capital Project. Health capital financing. Ann Arbor, MI: Health Administration Press, 1988.

Stambaugh JL A study of the sources of capital funds for hospital construction in the United States. Inquiry June, 1967;14:3–22.

Wilson G, Sheps CG, Oliver TR. Effects of hospital revenue bonds on hospital planning and operations. N Engl J Med 1982;307:1426–1430.CrossRef

Devereaux, P J, Choi P T L., Lacchetti C, et al.. A systematic review and meta-analysis of studies comparing mortality rates of private for-profit and private not-for-profit hospitals. Can Med Assoc J 2002;166:1399–1406.

Devereaux PJ, Heels-Ansdell D, Lacchetti C, et al. Payments for care at private for-profit and private not-for-profit hospitals: a systematic review and meta-analysis. CMAJ. 2004;170(12):1817–1824.CrossRef

Tikkanen RS, Woolhandler S, Himmelstein DU, Kressin NR, Hanchate A, Lin MY, McCormick D, Lasser KE. Hospital payer and racial/ethnic mix at private academic medical centers in Boston and New York City. International Journal of Health Services. 2017; 47(3):460–476.CrossRef

10.

Kacik A. Mayo Clinic CEO Noseworthy to retire. Modern Healthcare February 26, 2018:6.

11.

Olson J. Mayo to give preference to privately insured patients over Medicaid patients: Pushback on Medicaid, Medicare part of a trend. Star Tribune March 15, 2017. Available at: http://www.startribune.com/mayo-to-pick-privately-insured-patients-amid-medicaid-pressures/416185134/ (accessed March 4, 2018)

12.

Kacik A. Intermountain joins outsourcing trend for revenue-cycle management. Modern Healthcare January 29, 2018:8.

13.

Sinsky C, Colligan L, Li L, Prgomet M, Reynolds S, Goeders L, Westbrook J, Tutty M, Blike G. Allocation of physician time in ambulatory practice: a time and motion study in 4 specialties. Annals of internal medicine. 2016;165(11):753–60.CrossRef

14.

Himmelstein DU, Jun M, Busse R, Chevreul K, Geissler A, Jeurissen P, Thomson S, Vinet M-A, Woolhandler S. A Comparison Of Hospital Administrative Costs In Eight Nations: US Costs Exceed All Others By Far. Health Aff. September 2014;33:1586–1594.CrossRef

15.

https://openpaymentsdata.cms.gov/hospital/220071/payment-information (accessed March 6, 2018).

16.

Anderson TS, Good CB, Gellad WF. Prevalence and compensation of academic leaders, professors,and trustees on publicly traded US healthcare company boards of directors: cross sectional study. BMJ 2015:351:h4826.

Title: It Is Time to Liberate Hospitals from Profit-Centered Care
Authors: Sidney M. Wolfe, M.D.
Steffie Woolhandler, M.D., M.P.H.
David U. Himmelstein, M.D.
Publication date: 01-07-2018
Publisher: Springer US
Published in: Journal of General Internal Medicine / Issue 7/2018
Print ISSN: 0884-8734
Electronic ISSN: 1525-1497
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-018-4448-0

ACC 2024 Congress Coverage

Heart Failure Video

At a glance: The ONWARDS insulin icodec trials

Springer Medicine

It Is Time to Liberate Hospitals from Profit-Centered Care

Excerpt

ACC 2024 Congress Coverage

Year in Review: Heart failure and cardiomyopathies

Semaglutide benefits people with type 2 diabetes and obesity-related heart failure

Incentivised to exercise

New intervention for STEMI-related cardiogenic shock

» View more highlights on the ACC 2024 congress hub page

At a glance: The ONWARDS insulin icodec trials

Springer Medicine

Excerpt

Please log in to get access to this content

Other articles of this Issue 7/2018

Tracking Progress in Improving Diagnosis: A Framework for Defining Undesirable Diagnostic Events

Empathy and Burnout in Medicine—Acknowledging Risks and Opportunities

Performance of the 2015 US Preventive Services Task Force Screening Criteria for Prediabetes and Undiagnosed Diabetes

Capsule Commentary on Dalal et al., The Impact of Automated Notification on Follow-up of Actionable Tests Pending at Discharge: a Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trial

Analysis of the Variability of Abstract Structures in Medical Journals

Regarding “Effectiveness of Intensive Primary Care Interventions: A Systematic Review”

ACC 2024 Congress Coverage

Year in Review: Heart failure and cardiomyopathies

Semaglutide benefits people with type 2 diabetes and obesity-related heart failure

Incentivised to exercise

New intervention for STEMI-related cardiogenic shock

» View more highlights on the ACC 2024 congress hub page