Hospital bills can vary by tens of thousands. Here’s how to compare prices in SC
Correction January 4 at 2:30 p.m.: The hospital cost comparison website is not new as originally reported. It has been online for several years. Hospitals around the country are now required to share the cost data on their own websites.
The average cost for treating an ear infection at a hospital emergency room can be anywhere from about $500 to more than $1,500, depending on where you go for treatment, data compiled by the South Carolina Hospital Association shows.
New federal rules mean hospitals nationwide now have to make cost information available online, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
The South Carolina Hospital Association website, scpricepoint.org, gives people the ability to compare hospital prices across the state.
A bone marrow biopsy costs between an average $2,776 and $9,170, depending on what hospital you go to in South Carolina for the procedure, according the site.
A heart procedure, call a Catheter Ablation of Supraventricular Arrhythmia, costs on average from $72,749 to as much as $119,136, depending on the hospital, the data shows.
The Hospital Association site states that hospital prices can vary for several reasons: some have more complicated cases, and some have more Medicare and Medicaid patients. “If the hospital treats a large number of uninsured and government sponsored (Medicaid and Medicare) patients, its charges are likely to be higher. That’s because the hospital is paid less than the actual cost of caring for those patients,” the site notes.
Prices can also be higher for some hospitals if they just built a new facility, bought new equipment or are in an area with a shortage of healthcare workers, the association explains.
Data from the hospital association’s site shows that prices can vary by tens of thousands of dollars. The new rules do not mean hospitals will give exact numbers on what people actually pay, according to the Charleston Post and Courier.
“Standard hospital prices don’t reflect the complexity of a patient’s case and often do not include physician fees. Neither do they accurately portray the prices that health insurers pay because those amounts are negotiated,” the newspaper explained.
“We’re trying to provide a useful tool that real consumers and patients can take a look at so they can get an idea of what their charges may be before they go into a facility,” South Carolina Hospital Association’s Schipp Ames told WISTV.
The site notes that the price data does not take into account what insurance companies have negotiated with hospitals and what out-of-pocket expenses will be. The site also notes, “Of course cost is only half of the value equation. Quality is the other major factor.”
The state Hospital Association operates another site, myschospital.org, to examine hospital quality and safety.
When he proposed the rules in April, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said in a press release, “America’s healthcare system has to change, and President Trump’s Administration recognizes that. This payment proposal takes important steps toward a Medicare system that puts patients in charge of their care and allows them to receive the quality and price information needed to drive competition and increase value.”
This story was originally published January 4, 2019 at 10:47 AM.
