Changing reimbursement models and private equity ownership in spine surgery

Rising costs of healthcare have been a problem in the United States in the past decade, with unnecessary strain on both providers and patients. The fee-for-service reimbursement model has been proposed as one of the biggest contributors to this phenomenon; as such, newer reimbursement model-including the bundled payments model-have been proposed and are becoming more widely adopted. This review will first discuss the current payment models in practice and then overview private equity ownership as a new avenue in this particular domain.