title: Do physicians cost shift?
abstract: This study analyzes whether physicians charge their privately insured patients more-a practice known as cost shifting-in response to Medicare payment reductions. As part of congressional legislation in 1989 and 1990, Medicare reduced its payment rates for selected procedures by as much as 30 percent. Here we examine whether reductions in Medicare rates increase how much physicians charge privately insured patients. Our data provide no evidence that physicians respond to Medicare payment reductions by shifting costs to their privately insured patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Services, University of California, Los Angeles, School of Public Health, USA.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Rice
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Stearns
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: DesHarnais
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pathman
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tai-Seale
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Brasure
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D003361:Cost Allocation; D004470:Economics, Medical; D005251:Fees, Medical; D006801:Humans; D007348:Insurance, Health / Q000191:economics; D007349:Insurance, Health, Reimbursement; D006278:Medicare / Q000191:economics; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012494:Sampling Studies; D014481:United States