The rise of commodity care
Jacy E. Neczypor

TL;DR
This editorial discusses the risks and implications of 'commodity care,' a new model of direct-to-consumer healthcare that may harm patients and strain health systems.
Contribution
The paper introduces and defines 'commodity care' as a novel healthcare model and highlights its potential risks and ethical concerns.
Findings
Commodity care services often lack clinical evidence and can lead to overdiagnosis and unnecessary interventions.
These services contribute to fragmented care and inefficient use of healthcare resources.
The rise of commodity care reflects patient dissatisfaction with traditional healthcare models.
Abstract
The commoditization of health care under the guise of advanced preventive services and data-driven performance optimization poses risks for patient care and lessons for health systems. This editorial defines and examines “commodity care,” a growing model of direct-to-consumer healthcare characterized by self-referral for advanced diagnostic imaging and/or serologic testing. Promoted as empowering and proactive preventive care, commodity care services frequently operate beyond established clinical guidelines and lack robust evidence to support their clinical utility. Despite appealing marketing claims, these services carry significant risks for patients, including overdiagnosis, false-positive results, and incidental findings that lead to unnecessary interventions that may cause physical, psychological, and financial harms. At the health system level, commodity care contributes to…
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Taxonomy
TopicsHealthcare Policy and Management · Healthcare cost, quality, practices · Primary Care and Health Outcomes
