Surgeons, not hospitals, drive most of the cost variation in single-level lumbar fusion: Surgeon-level cost variation ran 30 times greater than hospital-level variation, according to research published Oct. 30 in the Journal of Neurosurgery: Spine.
Researchers used a detailed costing method to compare how much costs varied among surgeons and how much they varied among hospitals, all within a single health system.
Consumables and biologics varied in cost more than any other category, which points to supply choices as the main source of the gap.
The authors concluded that health systems trying to reduce lumbar fusion costs should focus on standardizing how individual surgeons practice.
The researchers also noted that they could not tell whether the cost differences reflect value or waste. Executives weighing implant standardization or bundled payment programs still need outcomes data alongside cost data before treating high-cost surgeons as outliers.
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