Are Gastroenterologists Scoping For Dollars On Medicare Patients?

Sometimes people flat out need cameras shoved down into their stomachs.  A long history of reflux disease, for example, could prompt a gastroenterologist to perform an “upper endoscopy”—to run a thin tube down the patient’s throat in order to view their esophagus and stomach and look for signs of serious illness.  Medicare has correctly decided that such upper endoscopies are valuable medical tests, and reimburse physicians relatively generously for performing them.  But what should Medicare do when gastroenterologists unnecessarily repeat these tests in patients who do not show signs of serious illness on their first exam?
Source: Forbes.com Healthcare News - Category: Pharmaceuticals Authors: Source Type: news