Letter re: Reducing costs while enhancing quality of care in MS.

Abstract

I read with interest the article by Drs. Kister and Corboy1 and the accompanying editorial by Drs. Bourdette and Whitham.2 The wholesale price of a number of injectable disease-modifying therapies, some more than 20 years old, are now in the range of $65,000–$75,000 per year. The average neurologic care bill of a patient with multiple sclerosis (MS) over a year's time (including office visits, phone calls, and cognitive interventions) is under $1,000, yet the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will withhold payments for neglecting quality measures such as discussing obesity with patients with a body mass index >30 during every office visit, diverting physicians from the true mission of patient care.