Medical price transparency saves families thousands
When my daughter needed surgery for her perforated eardrum, my wife and I didn’t know what to do. We didn’t have insurance and were nervous about how a bill would affect our finances, but taking care of our daughter was our first and highest priority.
We contacted various hospitals and surgery centers to get a sense of how much the surgery would cost, but no one would give us a precise number. I ultimately ended up with two separate “ballpark” estimates: one of $15,000 to $25,000, and one of $30,000 to $40,000.
It seemed like the providers I spoke to were making up numbers and no one was giving me a straight answer. I wasn’t an insurer and didn’t have any power, which meant hospitals and surgery centers weren’t taking my inquiries seriously.
Thankfully, I discovered the Texas Free Market Surgery website and found the cost of the tympanoplasty surgery my daughter needed. Shockingly, it was only $5,000.
My daughter’s surgery was a complete success.
My family made the choice to shop around for medical care instead of paying for insurance. Over the past 14 years, we have saved money, consistently paying less for bloodwork and standard procedures than the typical copay.
Unfortunately, not everyone can do this because of the complicated and opaque nature of the insurance system. I have worked in the health care industry for decades, and sometimes even I don’t understand what is happening.
My family’s experience shows the need for increased price transparency in the health care marketplace. When we go to a restaurant, we expect to know the prices before ordering a meal, and there is no reason health care should be different. When a family is about to make a life-altering decision, they deserve to know the price upfront.
Thankfully, a new order — the Price Transparency Rule — went into place on Jan. 1 that requires hospitals and medical providers to publicly reveal their real prices. This rule will lower health
care costs and ensure that families like mine will have a wide array of options when making important decisions.
Price transparency increases flexibility by allowing people to shop around for the specific care they need without worrying about getting hit with surprise bills after the fact. We were always going to get our daughter the best care possible, but it was an immense weight off our shoulders to know her surgery
wouldn’t cripple us financially.
Other families can also save big with price transparency because hospitals and insurers will have to lower their prices to compete with transparent providers or face losing business. These savings go directly to families who could use this money to help achieve their financial goals.
Under the new price transparency rule, people also will be empowered to become more invested in their medical care.
Without transparency, there is a wedge between patients and doctors because average Americans are scared of surprise bills; one-third of Americans have avoided seeking treatment because they were worried about being bankrupted by a surprise bill.
Enacting health care price transparency ensures American families don’t have to worry that getting the care they need will push them over a financial cliff.
Increasing price transparency brings together people from all backgrounds. Americans want to know how much they are paying for care just as they do with every other financial decision that they make.
My daughter was able to have complicated surgery at a stunningly low price because of health care price discovery. We are excited that price transparency will be the new normal. Much of the country has struggled immensely because of COVID-19, and price transparency is a tangible reform that alleviates financial pressures on all Americans.