Low-value Service Research Articles

The effect of increased cost-sharing on low-value service use.

We examine the effect of a value-based insurance design (VBID) program implemented at a large public employer in the state of Oregon. The program substantially increased cost-sharing for several healthcare services likely to be of low value for most patients: diagnostic services (e.g., imaging services) and surgeries (e.g., spinal surgeries for pain). Using a difference-in-differences design coupled with granular, administrative health insurance claims data over the period 2008-2012, we estimate the change in low-value service use among beneficiaries before and after program implementation relative to a comparison group not exposed to the VBID. Our findings suggest that the VBID significantly reduced the use of targeted services, with an implied elasticity of demand of -0.22. We find no evidence that the VBID led to substitution to non-targeted services or increased overall healthcare costs. However, we also observe no evidence that the program led to cost-savings.

Assessing Low-Value Health Care Services In The Military Health System.

Low-value care is the provision of procedures and treatments that provide little or no benefit to patients while increasing the cost of health care. This study examined the provision of low-value care in the Military Heath System (MHS), comparing care delivered in civilian health care facilities (purchased care) to care delivered in Department of Defense-controlled health care facilities (direct care). We used 2014 TRICARE claims data to evaluate the provision of nineteen previously developed measures of low-value care, including diagnostic, screening, and monitoring tests and therapeutic procedures. Of these, six measures appeared more frequently in direct care, while eleven measures appeared more frequently in purchased care-which may reflect the outsourcing of specialist services from the former to the latter. Magnetic resonance imaging for low back pain emerged as the most common low-value service in both care environments and could represent a target for future interventions. As the MHS and the United States increasingly focus on value-based care, the identification of low-value services accompanied by efforts to reduce such inefficient practices could provide greater quality of care at a lower cost.

Prevalence and Cost of Care Cascades After Low-Value Preoperative Electrocardiogram for Cataract Surgery in Fee-for-Service Medicare Beneficiaries

Low-value care is prevalent in the United States, yet little is known about the downstream health care use triggered by low-value services. Measurement of such care cascades is essential to understanding the full consequences of low-value care. To describe cascades (tests, treatments, visits, hospitalizations, and new diagnoses) after a common low-value service, preoperative electrocardiogram (EKG) for patients undergoing cataract surgery. Observational cohort study using fee-for-service Medicare claims data from beneficiaries aged 66 years or older without known heart disease who were continuously enrolled between April 1, 2013, and September 30, 2015, and underwent cataract surgery between July 1, 2014 and June 30, 2015. Data were analyzed from March 12, 2018, to April 9, 2019. Receipt of a preoperative EKG. The comparison group included patients who underwent cataract surgery but did not receive a preoperative EKG. Cascade event rates and associated spending in the 90 days after preoperative EKG, or in a matched timeframe for the comparison group. Secondary outcomes were patient, physician, and area-level characteristics associated with experiencing a potential cascade. Among 110 183 cataract surgery recipients, 12 408 (11.3%) received a preoperative EKG (65.6% of them were female); of those, 1978 (15.9%) had at least 1 potential cascade event. The comparison group included 97 775 participants (63.1% female). Those who received a preoperative EKG experienced between 5.11 (95% CI, 3.96-6.25) and 10.92 (95% CI, 9.76-12.08) additional events per 100 beneficiaries relative to the comparison group. This included between 2.18 (95% CI, 1.34-3.02) and 7.98 (95% CI, 7.12-8.84) tests, 0.33 (95% CI, 0.19-0.46) treatments, 1.40 (95% CI, 1.18-1.62) new patient cardiology visits, and 1.21 (95% CI, 0.62-1.79) new cardiac diagnoses. Spending for the additional services was up to $565 per Medicare beneficiary (95% CI, $342-$775), or an estimated $35 025 923 annually across all Medicare beneficiaries in addition to the $3 275 712 paid for the preoperative EKGs. Among preoperative EKG recipients, those who were older (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] for patients aged 75 to 84 years vs 66 to 74 years old, 1.42; 95% CI, 1.28-1.57), had more chronic conditions (aOR for each additional Elixhauser condition, 1.18; 95% CI, 1.14-1.22), lived in more cardiologist-dense areas (aOR, 1.05; 95% CI, 1.02-1.09), or had their preoperative EKG performed by a cardiac specialist rather than a primary care physician (aOR, 1.26; 95% CI, 1.10-1.43) were more likely to experience a potential cascade. Care cascades after preoperative EKG for cataract surgery are infrequent but costly. Policy and practice interventions to reduce low-value services and the cascades that follow could yield substantial savings.

Facility Level Variation in Rates of Definitive Therapy for Low Risk Prostate Cancer in Men with Limited Life Expectancy: An Opportunity for Value Based Care Redesign.

We sought to identify facility level variation in the use of definitive therapy among men diagnosed with clinically localized, low risk prostate cancer who were more than 65 years old and had a limited life expectancy of less than 10 years. Using data from the National Cancer Database we identified 18,178 men older than 65 years with less than a 10-year life expectancy receiving definitive therapy at a total of 1,172 facilities for biopsy confirmed localized, low risk prostate cancer diagnosed between January 2004 and December 2013. A multilevel, hierarchical, mixed effects logistic regression model was fitted to predict the odds of receiving definitive therapy. Overall 18,178 men (76%) older than 65 years with limited life expectancy and a diagnosis of low risk prostate cancer received definitive therapy, although the rate of therapy decreased significantly with time (p <0.001). Patients receiving definitive therapy were more often younger (80 years or older vs 66 to 69 years OR 0.12, 95% CI 0.09-0.15, p <0.001) and white rather than black (OR 0.86, 95% CI 0.75-0.98, p = 0.03). Conversely, being uninsured (OR 0.37, 95% CI 0.21-0.63, p <0.001) and receiving care at an academic medical center (OR 0.36, 95% CI 0.28-0.46, p <0.001) conferred decreased odds of undergoing definitive therapy. The proportion of men undergoing definitive therapy ranged from 0.12% to 100% across facilities. We found significant facility level variation in rates of definitive therapy in men with localized prostate cancer and limited life expectancy. Health care providers and policy makers alike should be aware of the varying frequency with which this potentially low value service is performed.

Analysis of Physician Variation in Provision of Low-Value Services

Facing new financial incentives to reduce unnecessary spending, health care organizations may attempt to reduce wasteful care by influencing physician practices or selecting more cost-effective physicians. However, physicians' role in determining the use of low-value services has not been well described. To quantify variation in provision of low-value health care services among primary care physicians and to estimate the proportion of variation attributable to physician characteristics that may be used to predict performance. This retrospective analysis included national Medicare fee-for-service claims of 3 159 834 beneficiaries served by 41 773 generalist physicians from January 1, 2008, through December 31, 2013 (data were analyzed in 2016 through 2018). Multilevel modeling was used to estimate the extent of variation in service use across physicians within their region and provider organization, adjusted for patient clinical and sociodemographic characteristics and sampling variation. The proportion of variation attributable to physician characteristics that may be used to predict performance (age, sex, academic degree, professorship, publication record, trial investigation, grant receipt, pharmaceutical or device manufacturer payment, and panel size) was estimated via additional regression analysis. Annual count per beneficiary of 17 primary care-associated services that provide minimal clinical benefit. Among the 3 159 834 beneficiaries (58.3% women; mean [SD] age, 73.2 [11.0] years) served by 41 773 physicians (74.9% men; mean [SD] age, 48.0 [10.1] years), the mean annual rate of low-value services was 33.1 services per 100 beneficiaries. Considerable variation across physicians within the same region was found (SD, 8.8 [95% CI, 8.7-8.9]; 90th:10th percentile ratio, 2.03 [95% CI, 2.01-2.06]) and across physicians within the same organization (SD, 6.1 [95% CI, 6.0-6.2]; 90th:10th percentile ratio, 1.61 [95% CI, 1.60-1.63]). The corresponding rates at the 10th percentile of physicians within region and within organization respectively were 21.8 and 25.3 services per 100 beneficiaries. Observable physician characteristics accounted for only 4.4% of physician variation within region and 1.4% of physician variation within organization. Physician practices may substantially contribute to low-value service use, which is prevalent even among the least wasteful physicians. Because little variation is predicted by measured physician characteristics, direct measures of low-value care provision may aid organizational efforts to encourage high-value practices.

Choosing Wisely Campaign: Valuable For Providers Who Knew About It, But Awareness Remained Constant, 2014-17.

Together with physician specialty societies, the Choosing Wisely® campaign has codified recommendations of which health care services' use should be questioned and discussed with patients. The ABIM Foundation administered surveys in 2014 and 2017 to examine physicians' attitudes toward and awareness of the use of low-value care. The surveys included questions on the factors driving that use, physicians' comfort in having conversations with patients about that use, and physicians' exposure to the Choosing Wisely campaign. Despite continued publicity and physician outreach efforts, there were no significant changes between 2014 and 2017 in awareness of the campaign among physicians (awareness increased from 21percent to 25percent) or physician-reported difficulty in talking to patients about avoiding a low-value service (42percent reported that such conversations had gotten harder in 2014, and 46percent did so in 2017). Barriers to the adoption of recommendations included malpractice concerns, patient demand and satisfaction, and physicians' desire for more information to reduce uncertainty. Multifaceted interventions that reinforce guidelines through personalized education, follow-up, and feedback, as well as aligned financial incentives, should be pursued to reduce the use of low-value services.

Utility of routine laboratory preoperative tests based on previous results: Time to give up.

IntroductionThe usefulness and cost-effectiveness of routine laboratory preoperative tests (POTs) have been challenged recently. In fact, the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) Task Force has stated that test results obtained from the medical record within 6 months of surgery generally are mostly acceptable. The aim of our study was to evaluate the degree of utility of POTs and their clinical benefit based on this recommendation.Material and methodsWe studied retrospectively every routine POT request from 8 randomly selected weeks in 2016. Every POT contained glucose, creatinine, haemoglobin and coagulation tests (PT-INR). Each pathological result for these tests was registered and classified as “expected” (if previous pathological result within 6 months existed for that test) or “unexpected” (if previous pathological result within 6 months did not exist for that test). Results of ASA physical status classification (a system for assessing the fitness of patients before surgery) and changes in patient management after POTs were retrieved from medical history as well.ResultsA total of 4516 tests (from 1129 patients) were analysed and 498 results were found pathological (11%). Of these, 403 were expected (8.9%) and 95 unexpected (2.1%). There was not any change in anaesthetic management for any patient due to these findings.ConclusionsRoutine POTs are an inefficient and low-value service. POTs have to be always ordered selectively after a previous consideration of specific information obtained from several sources (medical records, interviews, examinations, type of surgery) and only if the information obtained will result in changes in the management of the patient.

A Review of Empirical Analyses of Disinvestment Initiatives.

Disinvesting in low-value health care services provides opportunities for investment in higher value care and thus an increase in health care efficiency. To identify international experience with disinvestment initiatives and to review empirical analyses of disinvestment initiatives. We performed a literature search using the PubMed database to identify international experience with disinvestment initiatives. We also reviewed empirical analyses of disinvestment initiatives. We identified 26 unique disinvestment initiatives implemented across 11 countries. Nineteen addressed multiple intervention types, six addressed only drugs, and one addressed only devices. We reviewed 18 empirical analyses of disinvestment initiatives: 7 reported that the initiative was successful, 8 reported that the initiative was unsuccessful, and 3 reported that findings were mixed; that is, the study considered multiple services and reported a decrease in the use of some but not others. Thirty-seven low-value services were evaluated across the 18 empirical analyses, for 14 (38%) of which the disinvestment initiative led to a decline in use. Six of the seven studies that reported the disinvestment initiative to be successful included an attempt to promote the disinvestment initiative among participating clinicians. The success of disinvestment initiatives has been mixed, with fewer than half the identified empirical studies reporting that use of the low-value service was reduced. Our findings suggest that promotion of the disinvestment initiative among clinicians is a key component to the success of the disinvestment initiative.

Choosing Wisely: A Quality Improvement Initiative to Decrease Unnecessary Preoperative Testing

Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center is a rural, academic medical center in the northeastern United States; its General Internal Medicine (GIM) division performs about 900 low and intermediate surgical risk preoperative evaluations...

Association of Primary Care Practice Location and Ownership With the Provision of Low-Value Care in the United States

Hospital-employed physicians provide primary care within the hospital or within community-based office practices. Yet, little is understood regarding the influence of hospital location and ownership on the delivery of low-value care. To assess the association of hospital location and hospital ownership with the provision of low-value health services. This study compared low-value service use after primary care visits at hospital-based outpatient practices from January 1, 1997, to December 31, 2011, vs community-based office practices and at hospital-owned vs physician-owned community-based office practices from January 1, 1997, to December 31, 2013. Logistic regression models adjusted for patient and health care professional characteristics and year, and weighted results were used to reflect population estimates. Results were also stratified by symptom acuity and whether a generalist physician (eg, general internist or family practitioner) was the patient's primary care provider. This study used nationally representative data from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (January 1, 1997, to December 31, 2013) and the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (January 1, 1997, to December 31, 2011) on outpatient visits to generalist physicians. Participants were patients seen with 3 common primary care conditions, namely, upper respiratory tract infection, back pain, and headache. The use of antibiotics (for upper respiratory tract infection), computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging (for back pain and headache), radiographs (for upper respiratory tract infection and back pain), and specialty referrals (for all 3 conditions). This study identified 31 162 visits for upper respiratory tract infection, back pain, and headache, representing an estimated 739 million US primary care visits from 1997 to 2013. Compared with visits with community-based physicians, patients in visits to hospital-based physicians were younger (mean age, 44.5 vs 49.1 years; P < .001) and less frequently saw their primary care provider (52.7% vs 81.9%, P < .001). Although antibiotic use was similar in both settings, hospital-based visits had more orders for computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging (8.3% vs 6.3%, P = .01), radiographs (12.8% vs 9.9%, P < .001), and specialty referrals (19.0% vs 7.6%, P < .001) than community-based visits. Multivariable adjustment and symptom acuity stratification revealed similar findings. Visits with a generalist other than the patient's primary care provider were associated with greater provision of low-value care but mainly within hospital-based settings. Practice patterns were similar among hospital-owned vs physician-owned community-based practices with the exception of specialty referrals, which were more frequent in hospital-owned community-based practices. Visits to US hospital-based practices are associated with greater use of low-value computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging, radiographs, and specialty referrals than visits to community-based practices, and visits to hospital-owned community-based practices had more specialty referrals than visits to physician-owned community-based practices. These findings raise concerns about the provision of low-value care at hospital-associated primary care practices.

Payer Type and Low-Value Care: Comparing Choosing Wisely Services across Commercial and Medicare Populations.

To compare low-value health service use among commercially insured and Medicare populations and explore the influence of payer type on the provision of low-value care. 2009-2011 national Medicare and commercial insurance administrative data. We created claims-based algorithms to measure seven Choosing Wisely-identified low-value services and examined the correlation between commercial and Medicare overuse overall and at the regional level. Regression models explored associations between overuse and regional characteristics. We created measures of early imaging for back pain, vitamin D screening, cervical cancer screening over age 65, prescription opioid use for migraines, cardiac testing in asymptomatic patients, short-interval repeat bone densitometry (DXA), preoperative cardiac testing for low-risk surgery, and a composite of these. Prevalence of four services was similar across the insurance-defined groups. Regional correlation between Medicare and commercial overuse was high (correlation coefficient=0.540-0.905) for all measures. In both groups, similar region-level factors were associated with low-value care provision, especially total Medicare spending and ratio of specialists to primary care physicians. Low-value care appears driven by factors unrelated to payer type or anticipated reimbursement. These findings suggest the influence of local practice patterns on care without meaningful discrimination by payer type.

Use of Low-Value Pediatric Services Among the Commercially Insured.

Claims-based measures of "low-value" pediatric services could facilitate the implementation of interventions to reduce the provision of potentially harmful services to children. However, few such measures have been developed. We developed claims-based measures of 20 services that typically do not improve child health according to evidence-based guidelines (eg, cough and cold medicines). Using these measures and claims from 4.4 million commercially insured US children in the 2014 Truven MarketScan Commercial Claims and Encounters database, we calculated the proportion of children who received at least 1 low-value pediatric service during the year, as well as total and out-of-pocket spending on these services. We report estimates based on "narrow" measures designed to only capture instances of service use that were low-value. To assess the sensitivity of results to measure specification, we also reported estimates based on "broad measures" designed to capture most instances of service use that were low-value. According to the narrow measures, 9.6% of children in our sample received at least 1 of the 20 low-value services during the year, resulting in $27.0 million in spending, of which $9.2 million was paid out-of-pocket (33.9%). According to the broad measures, 14.0% of children in our sample received at least 1 of the 20 low-value services during the year. According to a novel set of claims-based measures, at least 1 in 10 children in our sample received low-value pediatric services during 2014. Estimates of low-value pediatric service use may vary substantially with measure specification.

Choosing Wrong.

Choosing Wrong.

Routine deferred computed tomography for patients with suspected urolithiasis is low-value healthcare

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the benefits of deferred routine computed tomography of the kidneys, ureters and bladder (CT KUB) for patients with a self-limiting episode of suspected urolithiasis.Materials and methods: The study comprised a case series of consecutive patients examined with deferred routine CT KUB for control of suspected urolithiasis. Patients examined with CT KUB at the University Hospital of North Norway, between 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2013, were included. The final analysis included 189 CT KUBs (response rate 48%). All data were extracted from the patient case files. The primary endpoint was the proportion of asymptomatic patients with a confirmed diagnosis of urolithiasis on CT KUB that led to surgical intervention within 1 year from the initial CT scan.Results: At the time of CT KUB, 171 patients (90%) were asymptomatic, of whom three (1.8%) were treated. Urolithiasis was confirmed on CT KUB in 23% of asymptomatic patients.Conclusion: Deferred CT KUB did not alter the clinical outcome for the great majority of asymptomatic patients. The majority of patients who received adequate pain relief in primary care remained asymptomatic, and did not need specialized healthcare. Refraining from CT KUB involves little risk. Deferred CT KUB for patients with suspected urolithiasis is a low-value healthcare service.

Low-Value Service Use in Provider Organizations.

To assess whether provider organizations exhibit distinct profiles of low-value service provision. 2007-2011 Medicare fee-for-service claims and enrollment data. Use of 31 services that provide minimal clinical benefit was measured for 4,039,733 beneficiaries served by 3,137 provider organizations. Variation across organizations, persistence within organizations over time, and correlations in use of different types of low-value services within organizations were estimated via multilevel modeling, with adjustment for beneficiary sociodemographic and clinical characteristics. Organizations provided 45.6 low-value services per 100 beneficiaries on average, with considerable variation across organizations (90th/10th percentile ratio, 1.78; 95 percent CI, 1.72-1.84), including substantial between-organization variation within hospital referral regions (90th/10th percentile ratio, 1.66; 95 percent CI, 1.60-1.71). Low-value service use within organizations was highly correlated over time (r, 0.98; 95 percent CI, 0.97-0.99) and positively correlated between 13 of 15 pairs of service categories (average r, 0.26; 95 percent CI, 0.24-0.28), with the greatest correlation between low-value imaging and low-value cardiovascular testing and procedures (r, 0.54). Use of low-value services in provider organizations exhibited substantial variation, high persistence, and modest consistency across service types. These findings are consistent with organizations shaping the practice patterns of affiliated physicians.

Physician Cost Consciousness and Use of Low-Value Clinical Services.

Choosing WiselyTM engaged medical specialties, creating "top 5 lists" of low-value services. We describe primary care physicians' (PCPs') self-reported use of these services and perceived barriers to guideline adherence. We quantify physician cost consciousness and determine associations with use. PCP attendees of a continuing medical education conference completed a survey. For each Family Medicine Choosing Wisely behavior, participants reported clinical adherence. Likert scale items assessed perceived barriers. Low-value service frequency was the dependent variable. A validated Cost Consciousness Scale created the predictor variable. We hypothesized that participants with greater cost consciousness would report less frequent use of low-value services. Of 199 PCP attendees, 143 (72%) participated. Papanicolaou test after hysterectomy was performed least (0.2 mean services performed/10 patients). Provider knowledge of sinusitis treatment guidelines was greatest but provided most frequently (3.9 mean services performed/10 patients). Practice related barriers were perceived most frequently for adhering to sinusitis treatment guidelines. Attitudinal barriers were greatest for avoiding osteoporosis screening in low risk patients. Greater cost consciousness was associated with less use of low-value services (P = .03), greater knowledge of guidelines (P = .001), and fewer perceived attitudinal and practice behavior-related barriers (P < .001 for each). Greater knowledge of guidelines was not associated with less use of low-value services (P = .58). Familiarity with Choosing Wisely was associated with both greater cost consciousness (P = .004) and less use of low-value services (P = .03). Greater PCP cost consciousness was associated with less use of low-value services. Interventions to decrease perceived barriers and increase cost consciousness, perhaps by increasing awareness of Choosing Wisely, may translate into improved performance.

Changes in Low-Value Services in Year 1 of the Medicare Pioneer Accountable Care Organization Program.

Wasteful practices are widespread in the US health care system. It is unclear if payment models intended to improve health care efficiency, such as the Medicare accountable care organization (ACO) programs, discourage the provision of low-value services. To assess whether the first year of the Medicare Pioneer ACO program was associated with a reduction in use of low-value services. In a difference-in-differences analysis, we compared use of low-value services between Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries attributed to health care provider groups that entered the Pioneer program (ACO group) and beneficiaries attributed to other health care providers (control group) before (2009-2011) vs after (2012) Pioneer ACO contracts began. Data analysis was conducted from December 1, 2014, to June 27, 2015. Comparisons were adjusted for beneficiaries' sociodemographic and clinical characteristics as well as for geography. We decomposed estimates according to service characteristics (clinical category, price, and sensitivity to patient preferences) and compared estimates between subgroups of ACOs with higher vs lower baseline use of low-value services. Use of, and spending on, 31 services in instances that provide minimal clinical benefit, measured as annual service counts per 100 beneficiaries and price-standardized annual service spending per 100 beneficiaries. During the precontract period, trends in the use of low-value services were similar for the ACO and control groups. The first year of ACO contracts was associated with a differential reduction (95% CI) of 0.8 low-value services per 100 beneficiaries for the ACO group (-1.2 to -0.4; P < .001), corresponding to a 1.9% differential reduction in service quantity (-2.9% to -0.9%) and a 4.5% differential reduction in spending on low-value services (-7.5% to -1.4%; P = .004). Differential reductions were similar for services less sensitive vs more sensitive to patient preferences and for higher- vs lower-priced services. The ACOs with higher than their markets' mean baseline levels of low-value service use experienced greater service reductions (-1.2 services per 100 beneficiaries; -1.7 to -0.7; P < .001) than did ACOs with use below the mean (-0.2 services per 100 beneficiaries, -0.6 to -0.2; P = .41; P = .003 for test of difference between subgroups). During its first year, the Pioneer ACO program was associated with modest reductions in low-value services, with greater reductions for organizations providing more low-value care. Accountable care organization-like risk contracts may be able to discourage use of low-value services even without specifying services to target.

Preoperative imaging of uterine malignancy: A low-value service

ObjectiveThe aim of this study is to examine the value of computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) before surgical treatment of uterine malignancy. MethodsRetrospective chart review was undertaken of women who underwent hysterectomy for uterine cancer at the University of Virginia. Radiologic reports were examined for evidence of cervical or extrauterine disease or incidental findings and correlated with detection of extrauterine disease at surgery. ResultsOverall, 204 of 448 patients (45%) had preoperative imaging. Scans were ordered nearly evenly by referring clinicians and gynecologic oncologists (GO) (95 vs. 122, 44% vs. 56%). Imaging was most common among patients with grade 3 endometrioid or non-endometrioid histology (86 of 101, 85%). Women referred with low grade disease had more false positive (4 of 112, 4%) than true positive scans (2 of 113, 2%). Overall, 23 of 190 (12%) reviewed preoperative scans indicated suspected extrauterine disease. Two of these 23 women were low risk by intra-operative "Mayo criteria" and had stage 1A disease; 14 of 23 (61%) had stage II or greater disease. ConclusionsPreoperative CT or MRI is of low value in predicting extra-uterine disease among uterine cancer patients with low grade disease. Women with low grade disease had false positive results more frequently than true detection of extrauterine disease. Abnormal imaging findings are more common and predictive of extrauterine disease in women with grade 3 or non-endometrioid histology but the value of these scans remains unclear.

Factors affecting professionals' selection in high and low-value online service procurements

In this paper, the aim is to determine the factors that lead to selection of freelancers in the procurement of professional service. The results reveal that higher bidder rating and higher number of bidder rating increases the likelihood of winning the auction while higher bid and higher delivery time of low-value project decreases the likelihood of winning the auction. Furthermore, higher rating, higher relative time of delivery and higher bid is more important for clients of low-value projects while higher number of rating is more important for clients of high-value projects. It is also found that higher bidder rating, higher number of bidder rating and higher relative time of delivery increases the winning bid amount while higher competition decreases it.

Accountable disease management of spine pain

The health care landscape has changed with new legislation addressing the unsustainable rise in costs in the US system. Low-value service lines caring for expensive chronic conditions have been targeted for reform; for better or worse, the treatment of spine pain has been recognized as a representative example. Examining the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and existing pilot studies can offer a preview of how chronic care of spine pain will be sustained. Accountable care in an organization capable of collecting, analyzing, and reporting clinical data and operational compliance is forthcoming. Interdisciplinary spine pain centers integrating surgical and medical management, behavioral medicine, physical reconditioning, and societal reintegration represent the model of high-value care for patients with chronic spine pain.