Outpatient vs. Inpatient
August 18, 2009 – 8:32 am by ScottSchoenvogelMany consumers automatically think that outpatient surgery is more cost-effective than inpatient surgery. While the outcomes are generally the same and patient convenience may increase with outpatient surgery, inpatient stays are often more cost effective by a factor of 5X!
The reason is that outpatient surgical reimbursements often uses an old reimbursement model that pays a relatively high percentage of charges while inpatient reimbursement is often based on a low daily fixed rate called a “per diem”. The charges do not vary much between settings because most of the charge is driven by the operating room experience and not the overnight stay. If the charges are both high and nearly the same, a consumer would want to protect themselves against the high charge by choosing the low fixed rate.
At the end of the day, it is up to the doctor whether you qualify for an outpatient surgery. Even if you do, you might want to have surgery the old fashioned way and stay a night in the hospital. A little extra nursing care may save you thousands of dollars. This is a topic you want to be sure is on your doctor discussion list.
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