Competing on the basis of fees?

The Department of Health, Education, and Welfare recently selected specific laboratory procedures for reimbursement under the lowest charge level criteria, mandated in Section 224 of the 1972 Social Security Amendment. According to the author, such government regulations could force hospital laboratories to compete with independent laboratories on the basis of fees, thereby threatening the former's financial stability. In this article, the author analyzes the problem and proposes a solution.