NEWS BRIEF: Hospital price transparency is being ignored, report says

A report issued this month by the Patient Rights Advocate organization shows that a law requiring hospitals to post their actual prices online is still being largely ignored 18 months after being implemented. In a letter to Gov. Brian Kemp, PRA founder Cynthia Fisher listed almost 30 Georgia hospitals that have failed to comply with the ruling, and only eight that have.

“Once fully realized, systemwide healthcare price transparency will provide significant financial relief to patients and all consumers of healthcare: employers, unions, workers and taxpayers,” Fisher wrote. “In these inflationary times, the financial certainty of knowing real, upfront healthcare prices, along with the ability to shop, compare prices, and avoid price-gouging, constitutes the single most important action governments can take to dramatically lower the cost of care and coverage, while increasing access and improving quality.” Details: patientrightsadvocate.org