In the Shadow of a Giant: Medicare's Influence on Private Physician Payments / Jeffrey Clemens, Joshua D. Gottlieb.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Clemens, Jeffrey.

Contributor:

National Bureau of Economic Research.

Gottlieb, Joshua D.

Series:

Working Paper Series (National Bureau of Economic Research) no. w19503.

NBER working paper series no. w19503

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource: illustrations (black and white);

Other Title:

In the Shadow of a Giant

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, Mass. National Bureau of Economic Research 2013.

Summary:

We demonstrate Medicare's influence on private insurers' payments for physicians' services. Using a large administrative change in payments for surgical versus medical care, we find that private prices follow Medicare's lead. A $1 change in Medicare's fees moved private prices by $1.16. A second set of Medicare payment changes, which generated area-specific reimbursement shocks, had a similar effect on private sector prices. Medicare's influence is strongest in areas with concentrated insurers, small physician groups, and competitive physician markets. The public sector's influences on system-wide resource allocation and costs extend well beyond the share of health expenditures it finances directly.

Notes:

Print version record

October 2013.