Physician Beliefs and Patient Preferences: A New Look at Regional Variation in Health Care Spending
American Economic Journal: Economic Policy
vol. 11,
no. 1, February 2019
(pp. 192-221)
Abstract
There is considerable controversy about the causes of regional variations in health care expenditures. Using vignettes from patient and physician surveys linked to fee-for-service Medicare expenditures, this study asks whether patient demand-side factors or physician supply-side factors explain these variations. The results indicate that patient demand is relatively unimportant in explaining variations. Physician organizational factors matter, but the most important factor is physician beliefs about treatment. In Medicare, we estimate that 35 percent of spending for end-of-life care and 12 percent of spending for heart attack patients (and for all enrollees) is associated with physician beliefs unsupported by clinical evidence.Citation
Cutler, David, Jonathan S. Skinner, Ariel Dora Stern, and David Wennberg. 2019. "Physician Beliefs and Patient Preferences: A New Look at Regional Variation in Health Care Spending." American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, 11 (1): 192-221. DOI: 10.1257/pol.20150421Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- D83 Search; Learning; Information and Knowledge; Communication; Belief; Unawareness
- H75 State and Local Government: Health; Education; Welfare; Public Pensions
- I11 Analysis of Health Care Markets
- I18 Health: Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
There are no comments for this article.
Login to Comment