Cost Reminders Via CPOE Lead To Fewer Test Orders

Displaying the cost of a test via computerized provider order entry systems prompted a 9 percent reduction in the number of tests ordered, according to a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine.

The study compared the number of tests ordered over six months when the CPOE system at Johns Hopkins Hospital displayed the cost of 61 tests to a six-month baseline when costs were not presented. Meanwhile, 6 percent more tests were ordered when cost information was not presented, according to a MedPage Today article.

"Displaying the Medicare allowable fees of diagnostic tests at the time of ordering can modestly affect provider ordering behavior," the study's authors wrote. "Whether broadening this intervention and coupling it with educational interventions related to cost consciousness and stewardship of resources will increase its effect on clinical practice deserves further study, provided that providers are not inappropriately incentivized to limit needed care."