General practitioners’ claiming of fees: An experimental study on the effect of feedback

Last registered on November 15, 2024
View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
General practitioners’ claiming of fees: An experimental study on the effect of feedback
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0014737
Initial registration date
October 31, 2024

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
November 15, 2024, 1:07 PM EST

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Country
Norway
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Bjørn-Atle Reme
Affiliation
University of Oslo
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

Additional Trial Information

Status
On going
Start date
2024-05-07
End date
2025-06-01
Keywords
Behavior, Health
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
A field experiment assessing the responsiveness of general practitioners (GPs) in Norway to an information nudge regarding their fee utilization and associated reimbursement levels.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Reme, Bjørn-Atle. 2024. "General practitioners’ claiming of fees: An experimental study on the effect of feedback ." AEA RCT Registry. November 15. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.14737-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
We designed a an information nudge given to a random subset of GPs in their reimbursement decision letter.
Intervention (Hidden)
We designed a notification message stating that the GP is among the GPs with the highest amounts of reimbursements paid. The notification message will be delivered in a box on the first page of the disbursement decision, which a GP receives each time they send in a reimbursement to HELFO (in average 2 times each month).

The sample, that consists of GPs among the 15% with the highest reimbursement claims paid out from HELFO the last 12, will be divided into two groups: Comparison (no notification) and treatment group (notification). As the notification is included in the disbursement decision, the number of times a GP receives it will depend on how often they send their reimbursements to HELFO.
Intervention Start Date
2024-05-07
Intervention End Date
2024-10-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Amount of reimbursement paid out to GPs.

Number of support calls to HELFO
Primary Outcomes (explanation)
Amount of reimbursement paid out for specific fees.

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Subgroup analysis based on gender and experience as GP.
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)
Subgroup analysis based on gender and experience as GP.

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
An information nudge.
Experimental Design Details
The nudge was implemented in a text box placed on the first page of the decision letter. It was placed immediately beneath the overall summary of the total reimbursement. GPs placed in the treatment group received the following message: "\textbf{Note: }In total, you have received X NOK in reimbursement over the last 12 months. \textbf{We see that you are among the GPs with the highest level of reimbursement claims in Norway.} Although your claims may be correct, we ask you to assess your use of reimbursement codes. You will find a detailed transcript of your code registrations further down in this letter. GPs placed in the control group received the following message: "\textbf{Note: }In total, you have received X NOK in reimbursement over the last 12 months. You will find a detailed transcript of your code registrations further down in this letter."
Randomization Method
Computerized coin flip. Blocked randomization - neighboring municipalities drawn to treatment/control.
Randomization Unit
Municipality. But disctrict for the largest municipalities (Oslo, Bergen, Trondheim and Stavanger).
Was the treatment clustered?
Yes

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
391
Sample size: planned number of observations
1170
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
195
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Appr 0.16 standard deviations can be detected There are 585 in each group. Alpha = 0.05 and power of 80%.
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
IRB Approval Date
IRB Approval Number
Analysis Plan

There is information in this trial unavailable to the public. Use the button below to request access.

Request Information

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

There is information in this trial unavailable to the public. Use the button below to request access.

Request Information

Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials