Trying to save by increasing doctors’ fees

Federal and state government agencies, as well as many insurers around the country, are experimenting with trying to cut health costs by paying doctors more. The idea is that by paying physicians to devote more time and attention to their patients, insurers and patients can save thousands of dollars on unnecessary tests, visits to expensive specialists, and avoidable trips to the hospital. A Medicaid experiment already under way in North Carolina saved the government program in that state about $162 million in 2006.