From Forbes:
On July 30, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services proposed a landmark new rule that would require hospitals to make public, in a machine-readable format, prices “for all items and services provided by the hospital.” Critically, the rule would require hospitals to publish both their “gross charges,” or their sticker prices, along with “payer-specific negotiated charges,” or the prices hospitals negotiate with each insurer they work with.
In addition, the proposed rule would require hospitals to disclose “payer-specific negotiated charges for common shoppable services in a manner that is consumer friendly.” For example, hospitals would have to post what they charge for MRI scans and common lab tests that patients often pay for out-of-pocket.Full story.
“This proposal is now the most significant step any President has ever taken to deliver transparency and put patients in control of their care,” said Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar. He’s right. This rule, if finalized, will revolutionize the market for hospital care.
See also:
- CMS Takes Bold Action to Implement Key Elements of President Trump’s Executive Order to Empower Patients with Price Transparency and Increase Competition to Lower Costs for Medicare Beneficiaries.
- Fact Sheet: CY 2020 Medicare Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System and Ambulatory Surgical Center Payment System Proposed Rule (CMS-1717-P)
- Full Proposed Regulation: Medicare Program: Proposed Changes to Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment and Ambulatory Surgical Center Payment Systems and Quality Reporting Programs; Price Transparency of Hospital Standard Charges; etc.
