This file is part of IDEAS, which uses RePEc data


[ Papers | Articles | Software | Books | Chapters | Authors | Institutions | JEL Classification | NEP reports | Search | New papers by email | Author registration | Rankings | Volunteers | FAQ | Blog | Help! ]

An analysis of the variation in billing charges of medical providers: causes and implications

Author info | Abstract | Publisher info | Download info | Related research | Statistics
Author Info
Michael A. Spinelli
George C. Canavos†
Douglas M. Brown
Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to review the billing methodology of physicians that participate in fee-for-service plans, and, using a data set of billing charges, determine the significance of the variation in fees by providers of certain kind of procedures. Providers use cost-plus pricing and take into account the medical aspects of the services and market forces. Using the Current Procedural Terminologies (CPT) established by the American Medical Association, the providers define the medical services by the six digit CPT code, and bill accordingly. The statistical evidence shows that there is some evidence that fees of providers who bill under the 'medicine' codes tend to exhibit more variation in charges than other procedures.

Download Info
To download:

If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. Information about this may be contained in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help page. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please be patient as the files may be large.

File URL: http://taylorandfrancis.metapress.com/link.asp?target=contribution&id=JABXB7W1CGRF3GKU
File Format: text/html
File Function:
Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version under "Related research" (further below) or search for a different version of it.

Publisher Info
Article provided by Taylor and Francis Journals in its journal Applied Economics.

Volume (Year): 36 (2004)
Issue (Month): 21 (December)
Pages: 2377-2384
Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML (with abstract), plain text (with abstract), BibTeX, RIS (EndNote, RefMan, ProCite), ReDIF
Handle: RePEc:taf:applec:v:36:y:2004:i:21:p:2377-2384

Contact details of provider:
Web page: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/routledge/00036846.html

Order Information:
Web: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/subscription.html

For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its listing, contact: (Christopher F. Baum).

Related research
Keywords:

References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:

  1. Ellis, Randall P. & McGuire, Thomas G., 1988. "Insurance principles and the design of prospective payment systems," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 7(3), pages 215-237, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
Full references

Statistics
Access and download statistics

Did you know? IDEAS indexes over 800000 items of research in Economics alone.

This page was last updated on 2010-1-1.


This information is provided to you by IDEAS at the Department of Economics, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Connecticut using RePEc data on a server sponsored by the Society for Economic Dynamics.