A new study led by the USC Schaeffer Center shows that California hospital spending on supplemental payments to contracted medical groups has steadily grown in key specialties over the past two decades. The findings were published in the journal Health Affairs.

Hospitals across the country use these stipends to help bolster staffing. Despite concern over hospitals’ growing labor costs, stipends have received little attention, possibly because there is limited data on their use. By leveraging California’s unique hospital financial reporting requirements, researchers were able to track this spending within the state over time.

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