Finding psychiatric diagnosis-related groups that work: a call for research

Diagnosis-related groups (DRGs) are under consideration as a way to pay hospitals for psychiatric care. Yet psychiatric DRGs account for only 3% of the variation in how long patients stay in the hospital. This nearly random variation means that psychiatrists may be working under a payment system that will have little relation to clinical reality. The authors identify important flaws in the current psychiatric DRGs and describe an alternative approach that promises to reflect clinical reality much more accurately.