Physician-owned hospitals have recently been the target of resistance from major hospital groups as lawmakers push a bill that would repeal the Affordable Care Act's restrictions on POHs.
Here are five numbers to know about POHs:
250+: The number of physician-led hospitals in the U.S., according to a report from Physician-Led Healthcare for America.
$1.1 billion: The amount that POHs saved in 2019 compared to traditional facilities, according to a recent report analyzing the cost of 20 of the most expensive conditions for Medicare patients.
3.5%: The number of Medicaid discharges as a percent of total for POHs, compared to 8.4% at traditional hospitals, according to a report from the American Hospital Association. The report contends that POHs generally treat a population that is younger, less complex or comorbid, and less likely to be dually eligible or non-white. These are claims that the American Medical Association refutes.
$500 million: The amount that the federal government saved over 10 years after closing Stark law's "whole hospital" exception loophole, which allowed physicians to refer patients to hospitals in which they had an ownership interest in the entire facility, according to the Congressional Budget Office. This statistic was cited in an Oct. 18 blog post written by the American Hospital Association as a way POHs allegedly increase government costs.
52%: The number of Medicare-certified ASCs that are 100% physician-owned, according to data from Advancing Surgical Care.