healthcare prices

See the following -

Clear Health Costs Helps Consumers Determine If Medical Costs Will Be Just Expensive, Or Really, Really Expensive

Robin D. Schatz | Fast Company | November 27, 2013

Looking to buy a flat screen TV, a new condo, or a nonstop flight to Rio? It’s a snap to comparison shop online for the best deals. But what happens when you’re in the market for a spinal MRI, a vasectomy, or an STD test? Or what about a cardio stress test, a dental cleaning, or a little Botox? More often than not, you’re out of luck. Read More »

Clear Health Costs Wants To Save You From Medical Sticker Shock

Kelly Faircloth | Observer.com | September 11, 2012

Ever opened a letter from a doctor to discover an unexpectedly, eye-poppingly enormous bill? Well, one New York startup wants to make sure that never happens again, by providing a platform that allows the average medical consumer to compare prices. Read More »

Healthcare Price Transparency: Why It's an Issue

Bob Herman | Beckers Hospital Review | April 26, 2013

Healthcare prices have been an enigma within the U.S. healthcare system, especially in light of this year's TIME exposé on why healthcare and hospital services cost so much. Simply put: More patients are starting to question why their healthcare bills are so high — and why they can't find healthcare prices at all. Read More »

In Mass., You Can Now Get Prices For Health Care In Advance (But It’s No T.J. Maxx)

Martha Bebinger | Wbur.org | October 8, 2013

“How much will my MRI cost?” It sounds like a simple question. But before Oct. 1, it was very difficult to get an answer. Now, Massachusetts is pulling back the curtain on what has been a largely secret world of health care prices. A new state law says health insurers must be able to tell members, in advance, how much a test, treatment or surgery will cost. Read More »

Kangaroos, Insurance Companies, and the Rising Cost of Healthcare

Complaining about health care prices is nothing new. The medical component of CPI has been higher than the overall CPI for decades. As far back as 1989 Gerry Anderson and colleagues showed "It's the Prices, Stupid" that explained why our national spending was so high compared to other countries. More recently, Elizabeth Rosenthal detailed those prices in an series of reports in The New York Times. She recently followed those up with her incisive book An American Sickness. Dr. Rosenthal also illustrated some of the clever techniques used to wring the most money out of our pockets, such as the upcoding industry and tacking facility fees onto visits. As the saying goes, if you're sitting at a poker table and you can't figure out who the sucker is, it's you.