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I can attest to that. It's ridiculous how the prices vary from hospital to hospital for the same procedure. And the difference between what the hospital charges and what the insurance are willing to pay. And you're stuck paying the difference. It's not going to change any time soon. I wonder how other countries deal with this.
It’s no secret that health care prices are all over the place. For a patient with commercial insurance, the cost of a cesarean section can range from under $2,000 to more than $40,000 just within the borough of Manhattan. But typically, the full cost of a medical procedure comes to light only after the bill arrives.
For years, hospitals have shielded the rates they negotiate with insurers — making it harder to call out the hospitals with the highest price tags and the health plans that agree to them.
That was supposed to change last January, when federal price transparency regulations took effect requiring hospitals to post their once-secret rates online. But more than a year later, the vast majority of hospitals in the U.S. still are not fully complying with the law. Accessing the pricing information that they do provide often remains difficult for the average person, and a federal official confirmed that the government has not handed out a single fine for non-compliance, despite hundreds of hospitals being flagged.
A survey of 1,000 hospitals nationwide, conducted between December and January, found that only about 14% were in full compliance with the price transparency regulations — and none of the 12 hospitals analyzed in New York City and Long Island were among them.
Prices are crazy, they wanted to charge me $1000 for blood tests and a telephone call with my doctor. I would love for pricing to be transparent and given the opportunity to know the costs so I can pay in advance. Right now no one knows or will admit what they want to charge you, you just have to wait to get the bill. And their pricing is sometimes in a range so it is still a guess at what they will charge you. They can add a few Q-Tips and tac on hundreds of dollars. What a scam.
Hmm, cost estimator - general office visit between $110 - $2000. I don't know how that helps. ER visit between $100-$7000. Knowing the prices only works if they tell you before hand. Just to talk to a doctor will cost you x amount. Then the doctor can say they want to run which tests and why, which will cost you x amount. Do you accept or decline?
Healthcare is one industry that can just straight up flaunt any market rules and government laws. No other industry can get away with this.
Imagine you go to a restaurant and they do not tell you prices, and then give you a bill only after you ate. And if you ask them before hand, they will just shrug and say the food is between $20 and $2,000...
All of these prices should not only be transparent but highly visible and easy to find. The staff should tell you the exact pricing of a procedure right away if asked. Also, there should be yelp for hospital procedures where people could rate or have some kind of statistics, which hospitals are good at what, especially for elective procedures such as births, etc. Make the hospitals compete and force to improve.
One area of healthcare that does follow rules is plastic surgery. And what do you see? Lots of competition, lots of advancement and improvements, and much more reasonable prices considering its usually not covered by any insurance.
Prices are crazy, they wanted to charge me $1000 for blood tests and a telephone call with my doctor. I would love for pricing to be transparent and given the opportunity to know the costs so I can pay in advance. Right now no one knows or will admit what they want to charge you, you just have to wait to get the bill. And their pricing is sometimes in a range so it is still a guess at what they will charge you. They can add a few Q-Tips and tac on hundreds of dollars. What a scam.
They charge $20 per pill of tylenol at the hospital, and a lot of people get it (because they do not know the price and the hospital doesn't tell them), but you can buy it for like $8 for a bottle across the street at a pharmacy.
They charge $20 per pill of tylenol at the hospital, and a lot of people get it (because they do not know the price and the hospital doesn't tell them), but you can buy it for like $8 for a bottle across the street at a pharmacy.
And you don't really need the beer (although you may think that you do). Where as you may really need the medical procedure and don't have the time or the energy to inquire and shop around. They got you where they want you, these hospitals.
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