Paying Wisely: Reforming Incentives to Promote Evidence-Based Decisions at the Point of Care

This white paper describes how current financial incentives in the fee-for-service (FFS) system can lead to the over- and underuse of services at the point of care by physicians and other clinicians. It explores prominent payment reform models and concludes that no single approach consistently rewards evidence-based care. The paper also suggests that more targeted use of these models—grounded in recalibrated FFS—might be the most effective way to neutralize incentives and facilitate evidence-based decision making at the point of care.