March 18, 2008 -- Physicians who refer the most patients to physician-owned ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs)disproportionately send privately insured patients to these ASCs while sending Medicaid enrollees to hospital outpatient departments, according to a new study of referral patterns in the Pittsburgh and Philadelphia metropolitan areas, published today on the website of the journal Health Affairs, 27(3):w165-w174.

NORC Senior Fellow Jon Gabel and colleagues studied referral patterns to determine whether physicians with a financial interest in an ASC are more likely to refer well-insured patients (as opposed to Medicaid patients) to their own facilities. Findings indicate that this kind of "steering" is happening frequently and the fear is that the practice may threaten the safety net, which depends upon profits from insured patients to subsidize those without insurance.  

Read the full article on the Health Affairs site.