BACKGROUND: It has been estimated that more than 30% of health care spending in the United States is wasteful, and that low-value care, which drives up costs unnecessarily while increasing patient risk, is a significant component of wasteful spending. OBJECTIVES: To address the need for an ability to measure the magnitude of low-value care nationwide, identify the clinical services that are the greatest contributors to waste, and track progress toward eliminating low-value use of these services. Such an ability could provide valuable input to the efforts of policymakers and health systems to improve efficiency. METHODS AND RESULTS: We reviewed existing methods that could contribute to measuring low-value care and developed an integrated framework that combines multiple methods to comprehensively estimate and track the magnitude and principal sources of clinical waste. We also identified a process and needed research for implementing the framework. CONCLUSIONS: A comprehensive methodology for measuring and tracking low-value care in the United States would provide an important contribution toward reducing waste. Implementation of the framework described in this article appears feasible, and the proposed research program will allow moving incrementally toward full implementation while providing a near-term capability for measuring low-value care that can be enhanced over time.
BACKGROUND: It has been estimated that more than 30% of health care spending in the United States is wasteful, and that low-value care, which drives up costs unnecessarily while increasing patient risk, is a significant component of wasteful spending. OBJECTIVES: To address the need for an ability to measure the magnitude of low-value care nationwide, identify the clinical services that are the greatest contributors to waste, and track progress toward eliminating low-value use of these services. Such an ability could provide valuable input to the efforts of policymakers and health systems to improve efficiency. METHODS AND RESULTS: We reviewed existing methods that could contribute to measuring low-value care and developed an integrated framework that combines multiple methods to comprehensively estimate and track the magnitude and principal sources of clinical waste. We also identified a process and needed research for implementing the framework. CONCLUSIONS: A comprehensive methodology for measuring and tracking low-value care in the United States would provide an important contribution toward reducing waste. Implementation of the framework described in this article appears feasible, and the proposed research program will allow moving incrementally toward full implementation while providing a near-term capability for measuring low-value care that can be enhanced over time.
Authors: Lynne Moore; Mélanie Bérubé; Pier-Alexandre Tardif; François Lauzier; Alexis Turgeon; Peter Cameron; Howard Champion; Natalie Yanchar; Fiona Lecky; John Kortbeek; David Evans; Éric Mercier; Patrick Archambault; François Lamontagne; Belinda Gabbe; Jérôme Paquet; Tarek Razek; Amina Belcaid; Simon Berthelot; Christian Malo; Eddy Lang; Henry Thomas Stelfox Journal: JAMA Surg Date: 2022-09-14 Impact factor: 16.681
Authors: Tessa Rietbergen; Denise Spoon; Anja H Brunsveld-Reinders; Jan W Schoones; Anita Huis; Maud Heinen; Anke Persoon; Monique van Dijk; Hester Vermeulen; Erwin Ista; Leti van Bodegom-Vos Journal: Implement Sci Date: 2020-05-25 Impact factor: 7.327
Authors: Bryanna Lee; John Mafi; Maitraya K Patel; Andrea Sorensen; Sitaram Vangala; Eric Wei; Catherine Sarkisian Journal: BMJ Open Qual Date: 2021-02
Authors: Samantha A House; Matthew Hall; Shawn L Ralston; Jennifer R Marin; Eric R Coon; Alan R Schroeder; Heidi Gruhler De Souza; Amber Davidson; Patti Duda; Timmy Ho; Marquita C Genies; Marcos Mestre; Mario A Reyes Journal: JAMA Netw Open Date: 2021-12-01