Many people disagree over the positives and negatives of ObamaCare.
But it is important to know some basic facts:
We are healthier under ObamaCare.
“Hospitals prevented nearly 15,000 deaths and 560,000 injuries by reducing additional illnesses and infections acquired in the hospital, preliminary data from the Health and Human Services. That would mean upward of $4 billion in overall health-spending savings between 2010 and 2012.
This decrease is partly due to the government’s program which penalizes hospitals for readmissions within 30 days of a hospital stay for the same problem. The decrease is also due to the increase in reimbursement to hospitals for better quality under ObamaCare. 2,225 Hospitals were hit with penalties for readmissions in 2013. Article.
This data shows that if healthcare providers are incentivized to make patients healthy – patients get healthier.
In the past, payment for health services was based on “fee for service.” Thus, each time a patient gets a service, the healthcare provider gets paid. There is no incentive to get the patient healthy.
The new model for payment incentivizes hospitals to make patients better and they will get paid more. This doesn’t always work, but we are making progress.
If you have implemented strategies to make patients healthier, please share your ideas by clicking the comment button below.
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