Value vs. Costs - Who Wins?

Dear Colleagues:

Enclosed is an article you might find of interest: “Implant prices and physician reimbursement have declined more than total costs and hospital payments in total shoulder arthroplasty.”

It is an unavoidable reality of supply & demand that downward pressure on price for arthroplasty implants is a consequence of mostly derivative solutions for surgeons and their patients. This is what Peter Theil would call “perfect competition” (from “Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future”). That said, to quote the author of the enclosed article, “Although implant prices have decreased substantially over time, the financial benefit has not been realized by patients or surgeons.”

This should be of interest to all of you who believe in your value as a care provider. Codman made this point over 100 years ago when he created the “end-result concept”. As healthcare becomes more transactional, outcome seems to become a secondary priority after cost. Said differently, the numerator becomes less important than the denominator in the value equation. Matsen has said “The Surgeon is the Method.” Reading this article, it feels to me that we (surgeons) become fungible assets just like the implants we place into our patients.

What do you think? You can share your thoughts on our WhatsApp and LinkedIn.

Best Regards,

Jon “JP” Warner MD

Founder, CSS

Implant prices and physician reimbursement have declined more than total costs and hospita.

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