> given that other relevant information like quality of care is available as well? Well first off, that's not a given. The article only mentions Medicare using

> given that other relevant information like quality of care is available as well? Well first off, that's not a given. The article only mentions Medicare using price and electronic medical records as a way of 'rating' providers. I can't find anything similar about Medicare rating providers based on quality of care. Second, look up the situation with Lasik eye clinics. Another user in this thread suggested it as a "great example of a highly functional healthcare market" driven by price competition. In reality, price competition in the Lasik market has caused eye clinics to operate more like car salesmen (complete with sales commissions, aggressive/pushy sales tactics, and deceptive marketing), and not like someone who actually has your best medical interests in mind. I'm not saying that simply introducing price competition to hospitals will lead to something like that, but it's certainly an example of price competition not being a good thing.