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Joanne Wu
Background This essay calls for a pay-for-performance program that rewards patients directly for achieving evidence-based health goals. Rewards in the form of discounts towards co-payments for doctor's visits, procedures, and medications could reduce cost and compliance issues, foster a stronger partnership between doctors and patients, and improve health outcomes. Funding for the program would come from insurance companies, employers, pharmaceutical companies, and the government. The author asserts that the current system, which places the responsibility and reward for quality of care on physicians, is paternalistic and neither cost-effective nor sustainable. Patients deserve a greater role in improving their wellness and reaping the rewards from it.
