cations.
If you're unable to reach full confidence with your outcome, don't
implement a warranty program until you are. "The idea of providing a
warranty if you don't simultaneously do something to assure yourself
that the quality of what you're offering is good puts you at an enor-
mous risk," says Dr. Casale.
Individualized approach
If you're uncomfortable setting one standard across the board for all
patients you take in, you could take a more individualized approach, as
the Deuk Spine Institute in Melbourne, Fla., has done. At Deuk, patients
pick the extent of their warranty program. "We'll sit down with them
and say if you pay X, we'll give you this warranty for 3, 5, even 10
years," says John Stewart, vice president of the institute. However, if
the patient's insurance agrees to cover 100% of the bill, they'll automati-
cally grant the patient a warranty that typically lasts for up to 3 years.
For all warranties, the cost of that warranty is bundled into the over-
all payment. So, for example, if a patient were to get a laser disc
repair — one of the less complicated surgeries that doesn't require
implants or biologics — the bill would be $85,000, which includes the
cost of the surgeon, the assistant surgeon, the anesthesiologist, the
facility fees and a 3-year warranty.
Plus, implementing the warranty hasn't cost Deuk anything. "We
haven't had to make good on it," says Mr. Stewart. "Really, it's all
about predictable outcomes."
Surgical warranties have also emerged in the ophthalmology space,
in particular for cataract surgery. But unlike using best practices to
ensure outcomes, ophthalmology centers like the Center for Sight in
Sarasota, Fla., use tiered pricing and include the warranty as a sort of
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