Hospitals Fail to Comply with Price Transparency Laws, Study Shows
Hospitals across the United States have been found to be in violation of federal laws that require them to publicly post prices for medical procedures since 2021, according to recent reports by the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) and Patient Rights Advocate. The surveys found that only 35% of hospitals were in full compliance with the law, leading to messy and confusing pricing information for patients.
A study published in JAMA Surgery further highlighted the issue by revealing that hospitals charge wildly different prices for trauma care, with prices for the same procedure varying up to 16-fold among hospitals. The study also found wide variations in trauma activation fees (TAFs), with authors suggesting that these discrepancies cannot be explained by trauma severity alone.
One troubling finding was that cash prices were often lower than negotiated prices, benefiting uninsured patients but leaving insured ones at a disadvantage. This lack of transparency and wide price variations in trauma care pose a problem that requires intervention, particularly for uninsured and financially vulnerable patients who are most likely to be affected.
Experts stress the importance of addressing these issues to ensure that patients have access to affordable and transparent healthcare. With hospitals failing to comply with price transparency laws and charging vastly different prices for the same care, it is clear that action is needed to protect patients and promote fairness in the healthcare system.
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