fee-for-service
noun
fee-for-ser·vice
ˌfē-fər-ˈsər-vəs 
often attributive
: separate payment to a health care provider for each medical service rendered to a patient
Examples of fee-for-service in a Sentence
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These include fee-for-service models incentivizing unnecessary care, third-party reimbursement shielding transactions from market forces, an aging population, a chronic disease epidemic and substantial waste from medical errors, redundant care and administrative costs.
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Kevin Vigilante, Forbes.com, 15 Apr. 2025
Seniors enrolled in Medicare Advantage spend, on average, $2,541 less annually than those enrolled in fee-for-service Medicare, even while Medicare Advantage provides critical benefits that original Medicare does not, including vision, dental, hearing and wellness programs.
—Katie Dempsey, Boston Herald, 27 Mar. 2025
Many healthcare organizations are still tied to traditional fee-for-service models, and switching to VBC requires significant investments in new technologies, infrastructure and training.
—Arpan Saxena, Forbes, 20 Mar. 2025
Today’s fee-for-service system pays clinicians for volume, not value.
—Robert Pearl, Forbes, 10 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fee-for-service
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Kevin Vigilante, Forbes.com, 15 Apr. 2025
Seniors enrolled in Medicare Advantage spend, on average, $2,541 less annually than those enrolled in fee-for-service Medicare, even while Medicare Advantage provides critical benefits that original Medicare does not, including vision, dental, hearing and wellness programs.
—Katie Dempsey, Boston Herald, 27 Mar. 2025
Many healthcare organizations are still tied to traditional fee-for-service models, and switching to VBC requires significant investments in new technologies, infrastructure and training.
—Arpan Saxena, Forbes, 20 Mar. 2025
Today’s fee-for-service system pays clinicians for volume, not value.
—Robert Pearl, Forbes, 10 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fee-for-service
Cite this Entry
“Fee-for-service.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fee-for-service. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
fee-for-service
noun
fee-for-ser·vice
ˌfē-fər-ˈsər-vəs
: separate payment to a health-care provider for each medical service rendered to a patient
—often used attributively
a fee-for-service group plan
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