Regional Variations of Medicare Physician Payments for Hand Surgery Procedures in the United States.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:Medicare reimbursement is known to exhibit geographic variation for inpatient orthopedic procedures. This study determined whether US geographic variations also exist for commonly performed hand surgeries. METHODS:Using the Medicare Provider Utilization and Payment Data (2012-2013) from Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, we analyzed regional physician charges/payments for common outpatient hand surgeries. RESULTS:The most commonly performed procedures in the United States were open carpal tunnel release (n = 21 944), trigger finger release (n = 15 345), endoscopic carpal tunnel release (n = 7106), and basal joint arthroplasty/ligament reconstruction and tendon interposition (n = 2408). A range of average Medicare physician reimbursements existed based on geographic region

SUBMITTER: Veltre DR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6436131 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature