A Fast Literature Search Engine based on top-quality journals, by Dr. Mingze Gao.

  • Topic classification is ongoing.
  • Please kindly let me know [mingze.gao@mq.edu.au] in case of any errors.

How Do Hospitals Respond to Price Changes?

Resource type
Author/contributor
Title
How Do Hospitals Respond to Price Changes?
Abstract
This paper examines hospital responses to changes in diagnosis-specific prices by exploiting a 1988 policy reform that generated large price changes for 43 percent of Medicare admissions. I find hospitals responded primarily by "upcoding" patients to diagnosis codes with the largest price increases. This response was particularly strong among for-profit hospitals. I find little evidence hospitals increased the volume of admissions differentially for diagnoses subject to the largest price increases, despite the financial incentive to do so. Neither did they increase intensity or quality of care in these diagnoses, suggesting hospitals do not compete for patients at the diagnosis level.
Publication
American Economic Review
Volume
95
Issue
5
Pages
1525-1547
Date
2005-12
Citation
Dafny, L. S. (2005). How Do Hospitals Respond to Price Changes? American Economic Review, 95, 1525–1547.
Link to this record