Here are five key notes:
1. The bundled payments cover spine and joint treatments.
2. UnitedHealthcare launched the pilot project with 40 providers — including Baylor — in 25 markets around the country. The insurer offers data analytics and reporting through Optum.
3. Baylor Scott & White’s North Texas hospital is the only institution participating
4. In the initial round of The Spine and Joint Solution — the bundled payment program — employers saved $10,000 on operations when compared with other marketplaces.
5. The bundle charges patients a flat amount for the episode of care, which extends from the diagnosis through rehabilitation. Medicare’s pilot program launched for hip and knee replacements at 800 hospitals reported a 21 percent drop in expenditures per episode last year and hospitals saved 8 percent.
6. United is currently in negotiations with Austin, Texas-based and San Antonio-based providers to create similar bundled payment programs.
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