This report focuses on the possible effects of establishing a payment structure for physician services that could be used in conjunction with various approaches to cost containment. It explores a fee schedule based on the Medicare relative value scale (RVS), the impact of conversion factors (CFs) on all payers, the difference between CFs set by private payers and CFs currently used by Medicare, and how Medicare payments would change under an RVS system. The authors also investigate how much of a gap exists between Medicaid fees and fees established under the Medicare fee schedule.
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