Doctors get paid the same when they make mistakes, run unnecessary tests and have to redo their work. Recently, health insurers have been proposing pay for performance programs for providers.

California has pioneered the rating of physician groups and rewards with cash - paying out $145 million since 2003 - for improving their ratings on such benchmarks as offering preventive care or patient satisfaction. California's program is voluntary, with more than 200 medical groups participating. Also, California and five other states will join a Federal pilot project that could lead to national standards that measure physicians' clinical performance. The pilot will study Medicare claims and claims of the largest prihealth insurance companies in California. This will extend the ratings to about 25,000 California physicians.

See full story at Los Angeles Times Online, Rethinking criteria for doctors' pay