Medicare Beneficiaries Report Similar Levels of Satisfaction With Health Care Regardless of Variations in Spending, According to Study

Variations in regional Medicare spending do not affect beneficiaries' perceptions of the care they receive, according to a study released Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association, Bloomberg/Tennessean reports. Medicare spending differences -- which range from an average of nearly $12,000 a year for a beneficiary in Miami to $5,700 for one in Minneapolis -- are not linked to beneficiary satisfaction, the study found.

"This is kind of the puzzle of health spending," Jonathan Skinner, co-author of the study and a Dartmouth College economist, said. Skinner added, "In areas that spend a lot of money and provide intensive care there's no consistent evidence that patients benefit. Nor do patients in low-cost areas feel deprived" (Bloomberg/Tennessean, 5/28).

An abstract of the study is available online.