Physician Fee Information: Impact on Consumer Behavior. Executive Summary

摘要

This research sought to determine whether providing consumers with information about physician fees has an effect upon consumer health care choices. The study includes two research samples, a random sample of state government employees enrolled in indemnity insurance plans, and a random sample of Medicare part B enrollees living independently in the community. Results for the post-intervention period revealed no differences between experimental and control groups on ambulatory expenditures, doctor office visits or costs per visit for either study population. Three alternative interpretations are offered to explain the failure of the experimental intervention to reduce health care consumptions: insufficient financial incentives, incomplete information (e.g., fee information without quality information), and inadequate preparation to make use of this information.