Executives at Bon Secours Hospital in Baltimore are in discussions with the Maryland Health Services Cost Review Commission to join the state's pilot program for lump sum payments, according to a Baltimore Business Journal report.
Samuel Ross, MD, CEO of Bon Secours Hospital and Bon Secours Baltimore Health System, told the Baltimore Business Journal he wants the hospital to join the "total patient revenue" program. The TPR system pays hospitals a capitated amount, or lump sum, of revenue every year, regardless of how many patients are treated or how many services are provided. If the hospital contains costs and manages health, it gets to keep all profits from the lump sum. However, the hospital has to endure any costs beyond the capitated amount.
It's similar to bundled payments and global budgets, and the Maryland Health Services Cost Review Commission created it so hospitals could "manage their resources efficiently" and slow down the cost of healthcare. Some hospitals, like Calvert Memorial Hospital in Frederick, have reported savings as well as reduced readmissions and reduced emergency department visits.
Currently, 10 hospitals are enrolled in TPR, most of which are smaller, community providers. Bon Secours Hospital would be the first urban hospital to participate in the program. Dr. Ross said pending final negotiations with the state, he hopes Bon Secours Hospital can be retroactively added to TPR for fiscal year 2014, which started July 1, according to the report.
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