Free Flap Reconstruction in the Era of Commercial Price Transparency: What Are We Paying For?

ABSTRACT:

Background

Commercial rates for free flap reconstruction were not known publicly before the 2021 Hospital Price Transparency Final Rule. The purpose of this study was to examine commercial facility payments to characterize nationwide variation for microsurgical operations and identify opportunities to improve market effectiveness.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was performed using 2022 commercial insurance pricing merged with hospital performance data. Facility payment rates were extracted for nine CPT codes for free flap operations. Price variation was quantified by means of across-hospital ratios and within-hospital ratios. Mixed effects linear models evaluated commercial rates relative to value, outcomes, and equity performance metrics, in addition to facility-level fact

SUBMITTER: Rochlin DH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10894306 | biostudies-literature | 2024 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature