health care price transparency

A sign points visitors toward the financial services department at Grady Memorial Hospital, in Atlanta.

Getting clear prices for hospital care could get easier under a proposed rule

10:50am August 10, 2023

by Julie Appleby

The Biden administration wants hospitals to do more to make their prices understandable, so that consumers know in advance what a health care service will cost them.

Many hospitals around the country, including Medstar Washington Hospital in Washington, D.C., have started sharing their prices online in compliance with a recent federal rule.

Health & Safety

Hospitals Have Started Posting Their Prices Online. Here's What They Reveal

11:40am July 02, 2021

by Julie Appleby

Since January, hospitals were supposed to be disclosing true prices for their services, as a way to empower patients to shop around. Turns out, compliance is spotty and the data can be hard to find.

Hospitals must now post on their websites, in a consumer-friendly format, the specific costs for 300 common and "shoppable" services, such as having a baby, getting a joint replacement, having a hernia repaired or undergoing a diagnostic brain scan.

Hospitals Forced To Be More Transparent About Pricing. Will That Save You Money?

11:02am January 05, 2021

by Julie Appleby

Under a rule that kicked in Jan. 1, hospitals must now make public the prices they negotiate with health insurers. But health policy experts have divergent views on what that will mean for patients.

One rule announced by the Trump administration Friday puts pressure on hospitals to reveal what they charge insurers for procedures and services. Critics say the penalty for not following the rule isn't stiff enough to be a an effective deterrent.

Trump Wants Insurers and Hospitals To Show Real Prices To Patients

9:47pm November 15, 2019

by Selena Simmons-Duffin

Two regulations announced Friday take aim at health care prices. One, to affect patients by 2021, addresses hospital rates. The second, a proposal, would require more upfront clarity from insurers.

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California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, along with 1,500 self-funded health plans, sued Sutter Health for antitrust violations. The closely watched case, which many expected to set precedents nationwide, ended in a settlement Wednesday. Above, Sutter

Health & Safety

Hospital Giant Sutter Health Agrees To Settlement In Big Antitrust Fight

6:01pm October 16, 2019

by Jenny Gold

Health care costs in Northern California, where Sutter Health dominates, are 20% to 30% higher than in Southern California, even after adjusting for cost of living. Settlement terms aren't yet public.

"As deductibles rise, patients have the right to know the price of health care services so they can shop around for the best deal," says Seema Verma, who heads the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and announced the Trump administration's plan this

Health & Safety

Trump Team's Bid To Make Hospital Costs More Transparent Is Data-Heavy

5:00am July 31, 2019

by Julie Appleby

The administration's rules would require hospitals to provide far more detail about the actual prices they charge insurers for medical care. Would patients welcome the data, or feel overwhelmed?

The executive order on drug price transparency that President Trump signed Monday doesn't spell out specific actions; rather, it directs the department of Health and Human Services to develop a policy and then undertake a lengthy rule-making process.

Trump Administration Pushes To Make Health Care Pricing More Transparent

5:40pm June 24, 2019

President Trump is issuing an executive order intended to force hospitals to disclose prices. A lot of work remains to turn this order into a regulation, and the industry is resisting the move.

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