Government
Medicare anesthesia payments lower than private rates
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Sept. 17, 2007
Medicare in 2004 paid an average of 67% less overall than private insurance companies for a set of seven anesthesia services, according to a new report. The Government Accountability Office looked at Medicare rates for 41 payment localities and found that the program paid 51% to 77% less than private payers. Average Medicare payments only ranged from $177 to $303, while private insurance payments for the seven anesthesia services ranged from $472 to more than $1,300.
GAO said, however, that anesthesiologists are generally paid better than most types of physicians. Citing a survey by the Medical Group Management Assn., the oversight agency noted that the 2005 median compensation for anesthesiologists of more than $350,000 was more than 10% higher than the figure for specialists and more than twice the figure for generalists.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2007/09/17/gvbf0917.htm.
