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HEALTH


HEALTH CARE COSTS UP TO 300% HIGHER FOR PRIVATELY INSURED PATIENTS THAN THOSE
WITH MEDICARE, REPORT REVEALS


THE REPORT REVEALS ‘REAL PRICE TRANSPARENCY’ FOR US HOSPITALS, WHICH MANY CLAIM
HAS BEEN LACKING


By Melissa Rudy Fox News
Published May 15, 2024 1:28pm EDT
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Most Americans — more than 65% — have private health insurance, but a new report
has revealed a potentially very expensive drawback.

Patients who have private (commercial) coverage may end up paying significantly
more for their medical care compared to those who have public health insurance,
such as Medicare, according to recent data from RAND Corp. in Washington, D.C.

As of 2022, employers and private insurance companies paid an average of 254%
more for medical services than what Medicare programs would have paid.

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HEALTH CARE COSTS UP TO 300% HIGHER FOR PRIVATELY INSURED PATIENTS THAN THOSE
WITH MEDICARE

Several states — California, Florida, Georgia, New York, South Carolina, West
Virginia, and Wisconsin — had medical costs that were more than 300% higher than
Medicare prices, the report stated.

The researchers analyzed medical claims data from a "large population" of
privately insured patients who were treated at over 4,000 hospitals across the
country between 2020 and 2022.

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Patients who have private coverage may end up paying significantly more for
their medical care compared to those who have public health insurance, such as
Medicare. (iStock)

The report also included the names and prices of each hospital.

"Calculating 4,000-plus U.S. hospitals’ overall relative prices has never been
done before this study, because it’s so difficult to collect the requisite data
and to get permissions to publish the hospital and health system names
associated with each relative price," said Brian Briscombe, a health care
analyst at RAND and one of the study authors, to Fox News Digital.

AS CHOLERA CASES RISE WORLDWIDE, HEALTH OFFICIALS SOUND 'CONCERNING' ALARM ABOUT
VACCINE SHORTAGES

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"This is real price transparency — naming the hospitals and presenting their
overall relative prices in a way that anyone could understand."

The report gives employers a tool they can use to become "better-informed
purchasers" of health care services, Peter Hussey, director of RAND Health Care
in Santa Monica, California, noted in a news release. 

"Hospitals account for the largest share of health care spending in the U.S., so
this report also provides valuable information that may aid policymakers
interested in curbing health care costs," Hussey also said in the release.

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The researchers analyzed medical claims data from a "large population" of
privately insured patients who were treated at more than 4,000 hospitals across
the country between 2020 and 2022. (iStock)

The wide variance of prices across hospitals is the most important takeaway,
according to Briscombe.

"Within a single city, you can find a hospital that (on average across all its
services) charges privately insured patients about twice as much as Medicare
charges for those same services — but down the street, another hospital charges
three times what Medicare charges," he told Fox News Digital. 

The difference in prices cannot be explained by differences in quality, he
added.

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> "This is real price transparency — naming the hospitals and presenting their
> overall relative prices in a way that anyone could understand."

Dr. Brett Osborn, a Florida neurologist and longevity expert, was not involved
in the RAND study but said the findings are "concerning."

"Hospitals bill private insurers multiples of the Medicare allowable," he told
Fox News Digital.

"The elevated costs are passed onto patients, resulting in higher premiums and
out-of-pocket expenses."

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As of 2022, employers and private insurance companies paid an average of 254%
more for medical services than what Medicare programs would have paid, according
to a new study.  (iStock)

And these costs are on the rise, Osborn warned. 

"People accept job offers because the employer offers health insurance —
otherwise, for many, the premiums would be unaffordable," he added.

Osborn emphasized the significant price variations among states.

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SOME PATIENTS WHO SEE FEMALE DOCTORS COULD LIVE LONGER, STUDY SUGGESTS: ‘HIGHER
EMPATHY’

"Hospitals in some states charge less than 200% of Medicare rates, while others
exceed 300%," he said.  

> "Due to its size, Medicare can negotiate lower payments — but private insurers
> lack this leverage."

"This discrepancy is due to some hospitals' market power, making it hard for
employers to avoid them. Due to its size, Medicare can negotiate lower payments
— but private insurers lack this leverage."

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The doctor also called for greater price transparency from hospitals.

The new report published the names and pricing models of more than 4,000 U.S.
hospitals. (iStock)

"Despite a federal rule for price transparency, only 24.5% of hospitals comply —
highlighting the need for informed health care purchasing and policy changes to
manage costs," he said. 

"The system is fundamentally flawed, designed to profit from illness rather than
promote health," Osborn continued. 

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"It clearly favors hospital systems, not the patients, reinforcing the harsh
reality: There is money in the sick."

HEALTH CARE IS ‘OVERWHELMINGLY COMPLEX’ FOR OLDER ADULTS, EXPERTS SAY:
‘EVER-INCREASING HURDLE’

Dr. Marc Siegel, clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center
and a Fox News medical contributor, said the issue of price variations is
complex.

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"Sometimes these are hidden costs, and sometimes hospitals and other health
organizations know they can get away with charging private insurers more while
obscuring prices from both the insurer and the patient to help compensate for
the shrinking reimbursements from public insurances," Siegel told Fox News
Digital. 

"At the same time, more out-of-pocket costs are transferred to the consumer in
terms of copays and deductibles, as middlemen take the profits."

> "The system is fundamentally flawed, designed to profit from illness rather
> than promote health."

With the lack of price transparency, there is no way to introduce competition,
Siegel said, as the true costs and prices are hidden. 

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The study did have some limitations, the researchers acknowledged. 

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR HEALTH NEWSLETTER

"We didn’t have sufficient claims data to publish all U.S. hospitals’ relative
prices," Briscombe told Fox News Digital. 

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"Some states in the U.S. don’t have All Payor Claims Databases (APCDs), so we
have to collect claims from one data contributor at a time – usually from
employers that operate in that location and whose employees and dependents use
those hospitals."

"Despite a federal rule for price transparency, only 24.5% of hospitals comply,
highlighting the need for informed health care purchasing and policy changes to
manage costs," according to a doctor who spoke with Fox News Digital. (iStock)

Overall, he said, the researchers had a "sufficiently large sample of data" to
estimate the overall relative price of each hospital and health system included
in the report, Briscombe said, "but it would be nice to have even more claims
data in order to publish the relative prices for all U.S. hospitals."

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

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Fox News Digital reached out to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and
the American Hospital Association requesting comment.

For more Health articles, visit www.foxnews.com/health.

Melissa Rudy is health editor and a member of the lifestyle team at Fox News
Digital. Story tips can be sent to melissa.rudy@fox.com.


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