News Releases

Anderson Weighs in on Hospitals Posting Prices Online

In recent weeks, Senior Vice President of Member Services Lisa Anderson has been quoted by the media on hospitals posting prices online, a new requirement as of Jan. 1.

ideastream Article on Hospitals Posting Prices Online

On Friday, Jan. 4, Anderson was quoted in ideastream's article on Cleveland hospitals posting their prices online. Anderson is concerned some consumers may be confused by looking at retail prices on a spreadsheet without any other context. She says understanding how medical services are priced is complex, and most prices on the chargemaster don't represent what a typical patient pays: 

“Most patients pay a negotiated rate through their insurance or they may be on some sort of governmental insurance such as Medicaid or Medicare,” said Anderson. Read the full story.

Crain's Cleveland Business Article on Hospitals Posting Prices Online

On Sunday, Jan. 13, Anderson was also quoted in a Crain's Cleveland Business article discussing how posting hospital prices online is one step toward transparency. Purchasers and consumers need price transparency for three main reasons: to help purchasers contain health care costs; to inform consumers' health care decisions as they deal with greater financial responsibility; and to reduce unknown price variation in the system.

"Those charges are going to vary from hospital to hospital, and that's because hospitals all provide different levels of services and their costs are all going to be different," said Anderson. "It gives them maybe a comparative value, but beyond that … it's a step, another step in providing cost transparency to patients as to what health care actually costs." Read the full story.

MORE: Anderson was also interviewed by News 5 Cleveland for a price transparency piece scheduled to run Friday, Feb. 1. Mark your calendars to tune in! To learn more about hospitals posting prices online, visit our webpage devoted to price transparency requirements or contact us.

TWEETABLE: Read what @neohospitals V.P. Lisa Anderson has to say on hospitals posting prices online, a new requirement as of Jan. 1. #pricetransparency