Recent study data suggest hospitals in more competitive healthcare markets do not demonstrate clear post-surgery outcome improvements across several high-risk procedures — a thorn in the side of those advocating for policies limiting hospital consolidation on the grounds of reduced care quality.
Published earlier this month in JAMA Surgery by the University of Michigan researchers, the analysis reviewed 30-day postoperative mortality and readmission measures for more than 2.2 million Medicare beneficiaries whose claims were recorded between 2015 and 2018.
Comparing these outcomes between high- and low-competition hospitals — as determined using the Herfindahl-Hirschman index (HHI) adopted by market regulators — showed that market competition “was not consistently associated with improved outcomes after high-risk surgery,” the researchers wrote.
Specifically, high-competition hospitals’ 30-day mortality measures were higher for two of the 10 measured procedures but lower for three and similar for five. Thirty-day readmission rates at high-competition hospitals were higher for five procedures, but lower for two and no different for three, according to the study, Fierce Healthcare reports. Read more.
