a $100,000 limit case they were able to settle more than 95% of the
cases for the full $100,000. What was in it for Arthro-Care? They were
billing $7,500 for the SpineWand and collecting an average of $5,750.
This was about 5 times the current selling price of the SpineWand.
Medically sound, perfectly legal?
The last piece of the puzzle was whether this model could be success-
ful in markets other than South Florida. The attorney noted that he
was part of a network of firms that specialized in PI and generally
dominated their markets in terms
of advertising and share. He even
had a map with all of the locations
flagged and commented that many
of his colleagues were "chomping
at the bit" to implement this
model.
I have to say that I was very
impressed. The approach
appeared from my point of view to
be both medically sound and per-
fectly legal. Of course, I was con-
cerned about associating ArthroCare and my reputation with PI. On
the other hand, implementation of this model in other markets could
provide short-term growth while we were doing the clinical studies
necessary to gain coverage from major payers. In addition, the finan-
cial incentives for spine surgeons were significant, which would give
us an entry into that market. It was well known that many spine sur-
geons were more financially driven than other specialists.
I briefed senior management on my findings upon my return and
gave them the pluses and minuses. I was actually torn, but this deci-
6 3
A U G U S T 2 0 1 5 | O U T P A T I E N TS U R G E R Y. N E T
Instead of taking
time to reflect on
my thoughts,
beliefs and actions,
I chose to "check
out" with endless
rounds of Tito's
vodka martinis.
