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Trump signs order that aims to reveal real health care costs

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dobieg

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WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday that calls for upfront disclosure by hospitals of actual prices for common tests and procedures to help keep costs down .

The idea is to give patients practical information that they can use to save money. For example, if a hospital charges your insurer $3,500 for a type of echocardiogram and the same test costs $550 in a doctor's office, you might go for the lower-price procedure to save on copays.

But insurers said the idea could backfire, prompting hospitals that now give deeper discounts to try to raise their own negotiated prices to match what high earners are getting. Hospitals were skeptical of the move.

Trump's order also requires that patients be told ahead of time what their out-of-pocket costs like deductibles and copays will be for many procedures.
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Trump signs order that aims to reveal real health care costs



It's about time someone had the balls to do this and honestly I'm not sure why it wasn't done a long time ago but most of us can guess why.


I also love the argument that insurers are using that posting prices will drive up prices. As if free market competition has ever done anything but drive prices down. Perhaps some of these insurers have some old executives from the former Bell telephone company.
 
dobieg said:
Trump signs order that aims to reveal real health care costs



It's about time someone had the balls to do this and honestly I'm not sure why it wasn't done a long time ago but most of us can guess why.


I also love the argument that insurers are using that posting prices will drive up prices. As if free market competition has ever done anything but drive prices down. Perhaps some of these insurers have some old executives from the former Bell telephone company.
Click to expand...

I would prefer that insurers publish typical covered costs for procedures and align that with what hospitals charge.
 
dobieg said:
Trump signs order that aims to reveal real health care costs



It's about time someone had the balls to do this and honestly I'm not sure why it wasn't done a long time ago but most of us can guess why.


I also love the argument that insurers are using that posting prices will drive up prices. As if free market competition has ever done anything but drive prices down. Perhaps some of these insurers have some old executives from the former Bell telephone company.
Click to expand...

The way things have been done, healthcare is pretty much like listening to a used car salesman saying, "Trust me!".

It won't be long until costs for procedures are published side by side on line so consumers can make informed purchasing decisions.

The immense cathedrals of health that have the marbled edifice set ups will have to justify their existences.

There will likely be a range of choices from which to select your care much like there are a range of outlets from which to select your clothing, lawnmowers and BBQ Grills.

This is long overdue!
 
code1211 said:
The way things have been done, healthcare is pretty much like listening to a used car salesman saying, "Trust me!".

It won't be long until costs for procedures are published side by side on line so consumers can make informed purchasing decisions.

The immense cathedrals of health that have the marbled edifice set ups will have to justify their existences.

There will likely be a range of choices from which to select your care much like there are a range of outlets from which to select your clothing, lawnmowers and BBQ Grills.

This is long overdue!
Click to expand...

I agree we have a major problem with healthcare costs. Something politicians aren't trying to deal with, thanks to the healthcare lobbies. Instead it seems our politicians keep trying to figure out how to pay more via taxpayer dollars.

Here is an interesting "Real Doctor Reacts to 'Adam Ruins Healthcare.'"



IMO there are lots of things we need to be dealing with regarding the entire Healthcare Industry, from Hospitals through Pharmaceutical companies to Insurance companies.

Just throwing more taxpayer dollars at the problem is not the simple solution.
 
dobieg said:
Trump signs order that aims to reveal real health care costs



It's about time someone had the balls to do this and honestly I'm not sure why it wasn't done a long time ago but most of us can guess why.


I also love the argument that insurers are using that posting prices will drive up prices. As if free market competition has ever done anything but drive prices down. Perhaps some of these insurers have some old executives from the former Bell telephone company.
Click to expand...

Interesting order.

Of course, there is no order requiring hospitals to reveal what "group volume rebate" they are giving to any particular insurance coverage.

What does that mean?

Well it simply means that the hospitals "charge" every patient the same amount, the insurance companies pay exactly the same amount as everyone else pays, and any payor who meets the "volume" criteria receives a "rebate".

If you don't understand what that means it means

  1. the "standard charge" for "procedure X" is $5,000
  2. an uninsured person would receive a bill of $5,000 if they had "Procedure X" done
  3. an insured person would receive a bill of $5,000 if they had "Procedure X" done
  4. the uninsured person would pay $5,000 in accordance with the bill that they received for having "Procedure X" done
  5. the insured person's insurance company would pay $5,000 in accordance with the bill that the insured had received for having "Procedure X" done
  6. everyone who had had paid more than one bill for having "Procedure X" done in a 30 day period would receive a "rebate" of 50%
  7. the uninsured person would have had only one "Procedure X" done in the 30 day period and would, thus, not receive any "rebate"
  8. the insurance company would have paid more than one bill for having "Procedure X" done in the 30 day period and would, thus, receive the "rebate"

To put THAT in perspective, substitute "cost of delivering a baby" for "Procedure X".

This scheme works in exactly the same way that the "loyalty rewards" on your (for example) Costco card works.
 
code1211 said:
The way things have been done, healthcare is pretty much like listening to a used car salesman saying, "Trust me!".

It won't be long until costs for procedures are published side by side on line so consumers can make informed purchasing decisions.

The immense cathedrals of health that have the marbled edifice set ups will have to justify their existences.

There will likely be a range of choices from which to select your care much like there are a range of outlets from which to select your clothing, lawnmowers and BBQ Grills.

This is long overdue!
Click to expand...

Only trouble is much of this doesn't work for a number of reasons. First off, when you're sick or elderly or have an emergency this is just way too much work. Second of all, it's just not realistic to say that I'll take this doctor to do this surgical procedure but I want it done at place x and I want this anesthesiologist but I want meds from this other place. Often times one thing is in network while others may not. Many patients are under a barrel when having healthcare issues and can't make decisions.
 
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Moderate Right said:
For the most part, patients are under a barrel when having healthcare issues and can't make decisions.
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Sounds like a healthy, functional base for a free market to me!
 
dobieg said:
Trump signs order that aims to reveal real health care costs



It's about time someone had the balls to do this and honestly I'm not sure why it wasn't done a long time ago but most of us can guess why.


I also love the argument that insurers are using that posting prices will drive up prices. As if free market competition has ever done anything but drive prices down. Perhaps some of these insurers have some old executives from the former Bell telephone company.
Click to expand...

I'm willing to be this will amount to the same thing as every other Trump plan:

The same as building the wall, getting Mexico to pay for the wall, ending violence in Chicago, making healthcare great, bringing coal mining jobs back, stopping NK testing nukes/missles, peace for the Middle East.

In other words, it will appear he's going to do something, his base will cheer, and then nothing will happen.

Same old, same old.
 
TU Curmudgeon said:
Interesting order.

Of course, there is no order requiring hospitals to reveal what "group volume rebate" they are giving to any particular insurance coverage.

What does that mean?

Well it simply means that the hospitals "charge" every patient the same amount, the insurance companies pay exactly the same amount as everyone else pays, and any payor who meets the "volume" criteria receives a "rebate".

If you don't understand what that means it means

  1. the "standard charge" for "procedure X" is $5,000
  2. an uninsured person would receive a bill of $5,000 if they had "Procedure X" done
  3. an insured person would receive a bill of $5,000 if they had "Procedure X" done
  4. the uninsured person would pay $5,000 in accordance with the bill that they received for having "Procedure X" done
  5. the insured person's insurance company would pay $5,000 in accordance with the bill that the insured had received for having "Procedure X" done
  6. everyone who had had paid more than one bill for having "Procedure X" done in a 30 day period would receive a "rebate" of 50%
  7. the uninsured person would have had only one "Procedure X" done in the 30 day period and would, thus, not receive any "rebate"
  8. the insurance company would have paid more than one bill for having "Procedure X" done in the 30 day period and would, thus, receive the "rebate"

To put THAT in perspective, substitute "cost of delivering a baby" for "Procedure X".

This scheme works in exactly the same way that the "loyalty rewards" on your (for example) Costco card works.
Click to expand...

It's going to amount to the same thing as every other Trump plan: Nothing.
 
code1211 said:
The way things have been done, healthcare is pretty much like listening to a used car salesman saying, "Trust me!".

It won't be long until costs for procedures are published side by side on line so consumers can make informed purchasing decisions.

The immense cathedrals of health that have the marbled edifice set ups will have to justify their existences.

There will likely be a range of choices from which to select your care much like there are a range of outlets from which to select your clothing, lawnmowers and BBQ Grills.

This is long overdue!
Click to expand...

Because when we are dying the first thing we think of is "How much will it cost to live" I want to shop around to save a few bucks if I have a heart attack.
 
JustHanging said:
I'm willing to be this will amount to the same thing as every other Trump plan:

The same as building the wall, getting Mexico to pay for the wall, ending violence in Chicago, making healthcare great, bringing coal mining jobs back, stopping NK testing nukes/missles, peace for the Middle East.

In other words, it will appear he's going to do something, his base will cheer, and then nothing will happen.

Same old, same old.
Click to expand...

LOL. Sounds like every single politician, doesn't it? And yet the clueless would vote for Bernie because surely Bernie will be able to do everything he says, right through Republicans and all.
 
dobieg said:
Trump signs order that aims to reveal real health care costs



It's about time someone had the balls to do this and honestly I'm not sure why it wasn't done a long time ago but most of us can guess why.


I also love the argument that insurers are using that posting prices will drive up prices. As if free market competition has ever done anything but drive prices down. Perhaps some of these insurers have some old executives from the former Bell telephone company.
Click to expand...

It's an interesting idea but I don't know how much difference it will make. Most medical procedures are dictated by the insurance companies, not the hospitals. Medical practitioners who abide by their malpractice provider's guidelines AND the patient's insurer's reimbursement plan really don't have a lot of discretion in what services they will and will not provide. Furthermore, if a patient comes in and says they want a non-covered procedure because it's less expensive the practitioner is kind of up a creek without a paddle.

The other problem is that not every procedure called "XYZ" is the same. What takes 10 minutes with one patient may take an hour for another.
 
dobieg said:
It's about time someone had the balls to do this and honestly I'm not sure why it wasn't done a long time ago but most of us can guess why.
Click to expand...

What happened to that 'wonderful' Trump healthcare plan that was supposed to be released this month? The suspense is excruciating.
 
iguanaman said:
Because when we are dying the first thing we think of is "How much will it cost to live" I want to shop around to save a few bucks if I have a heart attack.
Click to expand...

Yep, that's why the 'free market' and competition will NEVER work in the HC industry. A child has cancer and the child's mother and father are going to run around looking for the cheapest doctor and medicine and treatment? ah NO!! They want the best. Damn the costs..
 
Moderate Right said:
LOL. Sounds like every single politician, doesn't it? And yet the clueless would vote for Bernie because surely Bernie will be able to do everything he says, right through Republicans and all.
Click to expand...

There is a difference between Democrats and Republicans. It's time to give the Dems a real chance to prove it with REAL control of our Govt. for 8 years instead of 8 weeks like Obama had. The GOP has had their chance and failed miserably.
 
Finally a real news story, not that rubber ducky ****.
 
dobieg said:
Trump signs order that aims to reveal real health care costs



It's about time someone had the balls to do this and honestly I'm not sure why it wasn't done a long time ago but most of us can guess why.


I also love the argument that insurers are using that posting prices will drive up prices. As if free market competition has ever done anything but drive prices down. Perhaps some of these insurers have some old executives from the former Bell telephone company.
Click to expand...

I'll have to see the full details when I have more time, and I fully understand that this will not be a silver bullet, but in general I think this is a good idea. I see complaints about emergency medical care and not having the ability to shop around. I understand that, but if we can implement stuff like this so that when people are scheduling routine procedures or preventative care, which accounts for most likely the large majority of medical procedures, they can shop around and plan around affordability. And this will at the very least create a little bit of competition.
 
iguanaman said:
There is a difference between Democrats and Republicans. It's time to give the Dems a real chance to prove it with REAL control of our Govt. for 8 years instead of 8 weeks like Obama had. The GOP has had their chance and failed miserably.
Click to expand...

There is a reason why voters voted out over 1000 Democrats after Obama took office. Fact is, Americans often vote in divided government because they don't want either party to have full control.
 
iguanaman said:
Because when we are dying the first thing we think of is "How much will it cost to live" I want to shop around to save a few bucks if I have a heart attack.
Click to expand...

in England your age will tell you if state will spend money on you after heart attack...just saying
 
dobieg said:
Trump signs order that aims to reveal real health care costs



It's about time someone had the balls to do this and honestly I'm not sure why it wasn't done a long time ago but most of us can guess why.


I also love the argument that insurers are using that posting prices will drive up prices. As if free market competition has ever done anything but drive prices down. Perhaps some of these insurers have some old executives from the former Bell telephone company.
Click to expand...

Waiting for the follow-through. If there is some, good for Trump.
Also waiting for the exceptions and the loopholes. If there are some forthcoming, bad for Trump.
 
Trump said:
in England your age will tell you if state will spend money on you after heart attack...just saying
Click to expand...

You are making s****.
 
Checkerboard Strangler said:
Waiting for the follow-through. If there is some, good for Trump.
Also waiting for the exceptions and the loopholes. If there are some forthcoming, bad for Trump.
Click to expand...

Yeah, time will tell what this will actually mean for consumers. The first thing though is people don't shop for healthcare the same way they do for other products; then of course there are emergency procedures which don't provide the luxury of shopping for the best price.
 
It's unconstitutional.
 
If I get my arm torn off I can price shop for the best local hopsital.

Yay!
 
ElChupacabra said:
Yeah, time will tell what this will actually mean for consumers. The first thing though is people don't shop for healthcare the same way they do for other products; then of course there are emergency procedures which don't provide the luxury of shopping for the best price.
Click to expand...

If there is follow through on this then I expect that in some situations people will begin to try to shop for their healthcare a little more like they do for other goods and services.
 
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