Counterpoint
John F. Dombrowski, MD, PC
A
s we look to the future of health care, identifying ways to
save on costs is increasingly critical. But that savings cannot
come at the price of patient lives. We must ensure that we put
our patients, their health and their safety first. Some erroneously
believe that when it comes to anesthesia, we could save money by
eliminating team-based models of anesthesia care. They say there is
no risk. But they are wrong.
Mr. Horowitz's Nov. 28 article, "How to Save $20 Billion (Without
Repealing and Replacing
Obamacare)," which links
to the author's recent
blog on The Hill
(osmag.net/nutjj3),
is replete with errors
and assumptions that are
not based on the reality of
how anesthesia care is provided. The 2 most glaring
are the use of operating room "charges" (rather than
payment) and the "average delay of 22 minutes" in
cases with a 1:3 supervision ratio. The author
asserts that his proposed policy change would
save the government money, but Medicare, most
Medicaid and other payers pay by case type, not
operating room time, so his assumptions of
"delayed time" and "charges per minute" are
irrelevant. Additionally, the assumption of a "22-
minute delay" in cases with a 1:3 supervision
Team-Based Anesthesia Best for Patient Safety
Physician-led anesthesia care team model is proven and reliable.
"Nurse anesthetists are
valuable members of the
anesthesia care team, but they
are not physicians and cannot
replace physicians."
Physician-anesthesiologist says ...
Safer Care With MD
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