Mandatory bundled-payment Medicare programs should stay, Penn study suggests

(University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine) Hospitals that receive bundled payments for joint replacements either voluntarily or through Medicare's mandatory programs, vary by size and volume, but not in spending or quality, signaling a need for both programs, according to a new study. The results show that voluntary programs tend to engage larger non-profit hospitals, whereas some hospitals with lower volumes and fewer resources might only participate under a mandatory program.