Patient Perceptions of Surgeon Reimbursement

A new study published in the September/October issue of Orthopedics reveals that the vast majority of patients do not think that orthopedic surgeons are overpaid. They do, however, exaggerate how much a surgeon is reimbursed by Medicare for performing knee surgery.

This new work, performed by researchers at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, is, according to the October 20, 2016 news release, the first to examine patient perceptions of orthopedic surgeons who perform arthroscopic knee surgery and anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction.

“Our study demonstrates that patients place a higher value than what is reimbursed for these types of procedures and are willing to pay more out of pocket costs, ” says Kelechi Okoroha, M.D., a fourth-year resident in Henry Ford’s Department of Orthopedic Surgery and the study’s lead author. “When told of the actual reimbursement payments, patients believed the payments should have been at least five times more than the current value.”

As indicated in the news release, the study involved surveying 231 patients between April and June 2015. Nearly 90% of patients said physicians are not overpaid and their salaries should not be cut.”

Dr. Okoroha told OTW, “With the reimbursement model of healthcare changing to reflect patient based outcomes and patient satisfaction, we wanted to evaluate our patients opinions on surgeon reimbursement. There is a common misperception about surgeon pay and we believed there would be a large discrepancy between perceived reimbursement and actual reimbursement.”

“We found it interesting that not only did patients overestimate orthopedic surgeon reimbursement but they also did not think surgeons are overpaid and did not think that reimbursement should be decreased. When asked what is the best way to decrease health care cost, most patients believed decreasing reimbursement to drug and device companies would be the best way. Also patients preferred that their surgeon have sub specialty training and thought that surgeons with sub specialty training should be compensated additionally.”

“We believe this article provides an important opinion on patients perceptions of surgeon reimbursement for the most common orthopedic procedures. It demonstrates the value our patients have in these procedures and provides insight on our patients’ thoughts about health care reform.