A Value Analysis of the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers on Prices for Breast Care

The National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers (NAPBCs) certifies health care facilities that deliver high-quality care for breast disease. The objective of this study was to evaluate the relationship between NAPBC accreditation status and pricing for breast-related services to determine the value proposition of accredited breast centers.

A retrospective cross-sectional analysis was performed using Florida's All-Payer Claims Database, comparing pricing for breast-related services between NAPBC-accredited and nonaccredited facilities. Seven services were analyzed: five diagnostic and two treatment services. Price differences were assessed using descriptive statistics and Wilcoxon rank-sum tests at the 25th, 50th, and 75th percentiles. Price variation between facility types was evaluated using F-tests of equality of variances.

The study analyzed 400 facilities, with 59 (15%) providing diagnostic service pricing, 63 (16%) providing partial mastectomy pricing, and 26 (6%) providing full mastectomy pricing. No significant price differences were observed between NAPBC and non-NAPBC facilities for diagnostic services, including breast biopsy care bundle ($4840 NAPBC versus $5337 non-NAPBC; P = 0.48), office visit for initial evaluation ($339 versus $332; P = 0.21), diagnostic mammogram ($403 versus $366; P = 0.06), breast biopsy ($3928 versus $4546; P = 0.85), and follow-up office visit ($102 versus $102; P = 0.44). For treatment services, partial mastectomy prices were similar between facility types ($14,796 versus $15,322; P = 0.12). For full mastectomy, while median prices showed no significant difference ($20,914 versus $26,060; P = 0.08), NAPBC facilities had significantly lower 75th percentile prices ($25,641 versus $35,654; P = 0.048).

NAPBC-accredited facilities provide comparable or lower prices relative to nonaccredited facilities. Given their established compliance with evidence-based quality benchmarks, these findings support a value proposition for patients and health care systems.