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August 24, 2009
Would it work?
He gave me a quizzical look. We tried to imagine the scenario. A cardiologist tells an elderly woman that she needs bypass surgery and has Dr. Dyke see her. They discuss the blockages in her heart, the operation, the risks. And now they’re supposed to haggle over the price as if he were selling a rug in a souk? “I’ll do three vessels for thirty thousand, but if you take four I’ll throw in an extra night in the I.C.U.”—that sort of thing? Dyke shook his head. “Who comes up with this stuff?” he asked. “Any plan that relies on the sheep to negotiate with the wolves is doomed to failure.”The Cost Conundrum
This article suggests that fixing how doctors are paid is more important that figuring out how we pay for the medical care we get. That could well be true, but the quotation above merely suggests a failure of imagination.
I may not understand how to get optimal care for either my teeth or car, but I know that I can get a written description of the problem and proposed solution and get competing estimates and second opinions. That gives me significant power to get the experts to give good advice and compete on price. I don't have to understand my problems like a professional to get competition going.
Posted by OneEyedMan at August 24, 2009 9:25 AM
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