- Title
- Achieving cost control in the hospital outpatient department.
- First Author
- Sulvetta, Margaret B
- Date of Pub
- 1991 Supp.
- Pages
- 95-106
- Volume
- Supp.
- Issue
- N/A
- Other Authors
- N/A
- Abstract
- The rapid growth in outpatient expenditures and the congressional mandate for development of a prospective payment system (PPS) for these expenditures are discussed. Extension of diagnosis-related groups to outpatient care is shown to be infeasible. Alternative patient classification schemes and options for defining the unit of payment and establishing weights and rates are discussed. A PPS primarily controls price and can only address volume by defining a broad unit of payment, such as an episode of care. Therefore, adoption of a volume performance standard approach could be effective. Outpatient payment policies must be integrated with those of other ambulatory care providers.
- Abstract Continued
- N/A
- MeSH
- Ambulatory Care Information Systems : Ambulatory Care/classification/economics : Ambulatory Surgical Procedures/economics : Cost Control/methods : Diagnosis-Related Groups : Health Expenditures/trends : Medicare/statistics & numerical data/trends : Outpatient Clinics, Hospital/economics/utilization : Prospective Payment System/trends : Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act : United States
- NTIS Number
- PB99-106478
