Huffington Post
CMS has just released data on the differences in medical cost from different hospitals. This is a very big story in the medical community because now the hospital groups have to justify what they charge. This information has always been kept out of the public eye but this report will opens everyone eyes that cares.
In the past few years, the national health insurance carriers have released tools to their members to help them research different medical procedures. People have been shocked to see just the difference in cost for diagnostic procedures.
If we look at a tool developed by Anthem. This comparison tool will allow you to research multiple procedures. If we look at the cost of a MRI on your Knee in the 46278 zip code. It is listed that Alliance Health Care Services is charging $490 for that MRI. Now if we look at what St. Francis charges for the exact same procedure the cost is $1,612. It’s the same procedure and they are using the same equipment. So why is it that a hospital is charging so much more?
With the release of the data from CMS, this may create more questions for the health care industry.
Health insurance premiums are directly related to what the cost of care is. When the cost of care continues to rise so do our health insurance premiums.
Anthem Care Comparison
