Travails when comparing procedure pricing

Kaiser Health News published a column recounting the author's experience in comparing procedures across different hospitals. The author, a healthcare reporter, concludes, "The prices I examined were as transparent to me as hieroglyphics."

Surprisingly, the author found different prices for the same procedures listed at the same facility, perhaps defeating the idea of pricing transparency. It appears that some of the differences arise from some prices including ancillary services (or add-ons) that others do not. So, it appears that as much as the Health and Human Services agency wanted to enable easier price comparisons across hospitals, the industry's response is not sufficiently standardized. Nevertheless, the agency's regulation is a step in the right direction.