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Establishing Price Transparency for Medical Goods and Services

By Staff Reporters

The website Healthcare Blue Book http://www.healthcarebluebook.com is provided free to consumers. The site presents a reported fair price to pay for a healthcare service or medical product when the patient is paying cash at the time of treatment; adjusted for geography and zip codes. It reports to represent a payment amount that many high-quality providers accept from insurance companies as payment in full, and it is usually less than the stated “billed charges” amount.

Comparison Shopping

Unfortunately, it is difficult for consumers to determine fair pricing for healthcare. Prices are not generally published and the list prices (or billed charges) are higher than providers typically charge most of their patients with insurance. The Healthcare Blue Book is a free resource that shows a fair price for healthcare products and services to consumers.

The Consumer Need to Know

Consumers with traditional health insurance frequently need to know how much healthcare services will cost. Average deductibles are increasing and can be $1,000 or higher. Coinsurance rates, which are the percentage of the bill that the consumer must pay, range from 20 to 40%. Many consumers would prefer to use the doctor of their choice, instead of the one selected as “in-network” by their insurance company, as long as they knew they wouldn’t have to pay higher prices.

Assessment

There are also “non-covered services” that may not be covered by insurance. As health insurance companies shift more of the cost to consumers, consumers need to be able to choose healthcare services at fair prices.

Conclusion

And so, your thoughts and comments on this ME-P are appreciated. Give em’ a click http://www.healthcarebluebook.com and tell us what you think? As a physician or medical provider are you intimidated by this site and resulting price transparency? Feel free to review our top-left column, and top-right sidebar materials, links, URLs and related websites, too. Then, subscribe to the ME-P. It is fast, free and secure.

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Filed under: Health Insurance, Healthcare Finance | Tagged: co-pays, deductibles, Health Insurance, Healthcare Blue Book, medical price transparency, www.healthcarebluebook.com | 1 Comment »