As the healthcare reform debate heats up in Washington, a hospital CEO in Florida is warning lawmakers that it would be a mistake to restrict physician ownership as part of their efforts to reduce costs and increase access.
"Some policy makers adamantly oppose [physician ownership of healthcare facilities] because they believe it provides physicians with an inappropriate incentive to increase utilization of services and thereby increase costs," writes Pasco Regional Medical Center CEO Stan Holm in a St. Petersburg Times op-ed. But Mr. Holm says that hasn’t been the experience at his "full-service community medical center," which is less than 9% owned by physicians. "Physician ownership at PRMC has allowed us to align our interests to control costs, improve quality of care and outcomes, and provide our patients with a more satisfying experience," he writes.
Mr. Holm is sharing his story in hopes of convincing policymakers to scrap legislation that would ban physician ownership of hospitals. Even though the proposed ban would grandfather in facilities like PRMC that already have physician-owners, Mr. Holm says it would still restrict those facilities from expanding.
"We believe PRMC should be permitted to grow or evolve based on patient and community needs," writes Mr. Holm. "Once they hear our story and see examples of how well this type of partnership has worked, we believe our patients, the community and Florida's policymakers will agree with us."
Congress approved a children’s health coverage bill earlier this year without a proposed provision restricting physician ownership, but the issue is expected to surface again in the coming months as the Obama administration and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle debate plans to overhaul the U.S. healthcare system.
—Irene Tsikitas
