Health-care consultant Stephen Lewis and University of Toronto health policy professor Terrence Sullivan argue that fee-for-service creates “perverse incentives” that allow poor practices to be more lucrative.
Physicians need to take more responsibility for the fact that they influence spending in other parts of the health system, Martin says. When they write prescriptions, they have an impact on the volume and types of drugs used. They also have a big say in who gets admitted to hospital, who gets treatment and who gets diagnostic tests.