Publication Date: May 2nd, 2007
Publication Type(s): Policy Brief
Topic(s): Hospitals and Clinics, Quality
Author(s): Davidson, G.
Statistical models were constructed to assess whether hospital size impacts our ability to identify “true” hospital ranks using data generated by pay-for performance programs. Pay-for-performance methods that identify relative quality from single-year ranks based on composite scores are especially problematic for small hospitals. Small hospitals are more likely to not receive a financial reward when their true rank is actually in the highest quality category. Conversely, they are also more likely to receive a financial reward when their true rank is not in the highest quality category.