It’s hard to quantify clinicians’ work, but to get paid, everything must have a price. The current solution is the Relative Value Unit (RVU) model of physician compensation. RVUs compensate based on productivity, signifying the relative amount of work and resources required to service a patient.
RVUs are made up of three components, each with a different amount of impact on total RVU and reimbursement.
Equates to the required time (e.g., billing, coding, and documentation) and intensity (e.g., technical skill, mental effort, and judgment) it takes to perform a given procedure. Accounts for the largest portion of total RVU with the greatest impact on reimbursement
Costs such as rent, equipment and supplies, consulting and professional services, and staff salaries.
Professional liability insurance for the provider. Accounts for the smallest portion of total RVU.
Medicare updates its Physician Fee Schedule each year, assigning RVU totals to each of the 10,000+ CPT codes. The amount paid for each service is determined from:
RVUs can be calculated per visit, per hour, or per provider cost relative to the RVUs.
RVUs can be used as a part of physician compensation – it is up to the hospital how much pay is attributed to RVUs.
Hospitals using RVUs must always ensure that productivity and efficiency do not come at the cost of quality patient care.
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