News, Analysis, Trends, Management Innovations for
Clinical Laboratories and Pathology Groups

Hosted by Robert Michel

News, Analysis, Trends, Management Innovations for
Clinical Laboratories and Pathology Groups

Hosted by Robert Michel
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Tough Times Ahead for Anatomic Pathology as Group Revenue Declines and Pathologists’ Incomes Drop Due to Payer Price Cuts, Narrow Networks, and Claims Denials

Many pathology groups report shrinking revenue, yet some innovative pathology groups continue to grow through savvy pricing and by adding value to payers and physicians

Times are tough for anatomic pathologists in private practice. Medicare programs and private payers regularly slash prices for both technical component and professional component services. In addition, the growing number of narrow networks means that pathology groups find themselves excluded from access to an ever-larger proportion of patients.

This is not news for the typical anatomic pathologist working in a private practice setting, who today may be making substantially less personal income than just a few years ago. Over the past decade, pathologists have seen multiple assaults to their revenue by client physicians, health insurers, and consumers. (more…)

Performance-based Pathology Part A Agreements Are Win-Win with Hospitals

Pathologists find new Part A contract model creates added value for hospitals

Now pathologists have a new approach to reverse the trend for hospitals and health systems to pay even less for Part A pathology professional services. Innovative pathologists are crafting what they call a “performance-based Part A Support” agreement that adds new value for the hospital, along with additional compensation for the pathologists.

For pathologists, this is a major breakthrough in stabilizing and increasing hospital compensation for these important services. After all, for most of the past decade, many hospitals arbitrarily cut reimbursement for Part A pathology professional services—even as these hospitals held pathologists to ever-higher standards, including improved patient outcomes and more resources devoted to patient safety in the hospital’s clinical laboratory.

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