According to a new study, doctor visits that result in a referral to a specialist have grown by 159% over the past decade. Suzy Khimm summarizes the reasons for us:
The big question is why doctors have become more likely to send their patients to specialists. Part of the answer, Landon finds, has to do with health care becoming more complex, with new technology that demands more speciality care. Physicians have also found themselves with more preventive tests and screenings to handle, which may cut into time to deal with other issues. And, part of it likely has to do with the economics of referrals: Doctors who have an ownership stake in their practice are 50 percent more likely to refer to a specialist, which would increase the total revenue generated by a given patient.
There’s not much we can do about the fact that medicine is becoming increasingly complex. That’s likely to just get worse. But the financial incentives for referrals sure seem ripe for reform. Obamacare makes a stab in this direction with its pilot program for accountable care organizations, but there’s no telling yet if it will have a significant impact. Stay tuned.
