Pricing transparency from insurers
July 11, 2022
Kaiser Health News reported that as of July 1, 2022, US health insurers are required to post machine-readable files that detail how much the insurers pay providers for procedures. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) had previously required hospitals to disclose prices that they charged. However, a number of hospitals failed to comply, even though they were liable for fines. The hope is that this current regulation will be more effective in disseminating prices as there are far fewer insurers than providers.
The article pointed out the challenge of aggregating the sheer volume of these prices. It remains to be seen how well insurers comply and whether a central database of this information will sway patient behavior.