Medicare
CMAJ 2000;162:1125
In response to: B. Day
Perhaps Brian Day, in criticizing our editorial,1 should reread the referenced paper [editor's preface].2 Although that piece focused on the debacle of for-profit managed care in the US we could also draw Day's attention to studies specific to the question of hospital ownership. These show, for example, that US medicare spending in 1995 in for-profit markets resulted in $5.9 billion in excess costs when compared with spending in not-for-profit markets.3 Privately financed care costs considerably more than equivalent publicly financed care.
John Hoey
Editor-in-chief
 |
Send a letter to the editor Envoyez une lettre à la rédaction |
References
-
Klein's surgical strke at medicare [editorial]. CMAJ 2000;162(3):309. [MEDLINE]
Rough seas in US managed care [editor's preface]. CMAJ 1999;161(6):669. [MEDLINE]
Silverman EM, Skinner JS, Fisher ES. The association between for-profit hospital ownership and increased medicare spending. N Engl J Med 1999;341:420-6. [MEDLINE]
© 2000 Canadian Medical Association or its licensors
