fee-for-service
DEFINITION: Fee-for-service is a system of health care payment in which a provider is paid separately for each particular service rendered. Original Medicare is an example of fee-for-service coverage, and there are Medicare Advantage plans that also operate on a fee-for-service basis.
Alternatives to fee-for-service programs include value-based or bundled payments, in which providers are paid based on outcomes and efficiency, rather than for each separate procedure that they perform.
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