title: Physician collaboration with payers: an important step on the road to optimum patient care.
abstract: In simpler times, patients willingly exchanged such things as food, clothing, and the fruits of their labor directly with physicians as payment for medical services rendered. Since the advent of third-party intermediaries who assumed responsibility for that payment, physicians have had a tenuous and often confrontational relationship with those intermediaries. This article discusses the rationale, principles, and methods whereby physicians can reverse the long-standing trend of confrontation with payers and thus provide benefit to themselves, payers, and patients through a collaborative process of positive engagement.
authors.affiliation: North Shore Medical Center, Department of Radiology, Salem, MA 01970-2714, USA. jpatti@partners.org
authors.forename: John A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Patti
mesh_terms: D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D007349:Insurance, Health, Reimbursement / Q000191:economics*; D007373:Interinstitutional Relations; D010819:Physician's Role; D010820:Physicians / Q000458:organization & administration*; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care / Q000379:methods / Q000458:organization & administration*; D011871:Radiology / Q000458:organization & administration*; D012051:Reimbursement Mechanisms / Q000458:organization & administration*; D014481:United States