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The real problem is that consumers don't care about the prices Just out of curiosity you wouldn't happen to be a twenty-something in relatively good health wou
by jbigelow76 7y ago
The real problem is that consumers don't care about the prices
Just out of curiosity you wouldn't happen to be a twenty-something in relatively good health would you? :)
- johnwheeler 7y agoYeah, I thought the same thing. I absolutely care about prices and transparency. Wait until op has a baby delivered and sees crap like: * BP/READ $349 * OR/FOO $2090 * OR/BAR $1000 * OR/BAZ $2090 Not real codes, but they might as well be with the current system...
- nwah1 7y agoI have done that and seen all of those. I'm thinking at the systemic level. If everyone had to care about prices, then there would be more demand for transparency, and more competition in pricing, which would help even those who are unable or unwilling to price shop. I also bring up single-payer in a related way because the need to find in-network providers within reasonable distance often is such a limiting factor that price shopping isn't possible. With single-payer, one could actually choose between all of the providers... in addition to other benefits. There are websites like ZocDoc which are like yelp for doctors, but they can only do so much because of the lack of price transparency, and lack of ability of consumers to choose doctors out of network.
- coldcode 7y agoEverything in health care is a code, I think there are something like 10,000 different ones in the latest version.
- delecti 7y agoI think perhaps a better way to phrase it is that people aren't able to meaningfully act on price information.
- nwah1 7y agoThere are some markets where price shopping is possible and does happen. For instance, LASIK prices plummeted as a result of competition and price shopping. There could be many more, if not for various policies that impede this.
- delecti 7y agoI think LASIK is probably closer to cosmetic surgery than "healthcare", at least as far as most of this discussion is concerned. If your arm is broken you can't really shop around.
- nwah1 7y agoIt takes like 5 minutes, max, to shop around for a pizza. You can easily pull up prices, reviews, and so on. If price transparency and quality comparison were made easily accessible, and one could actually choose options regardless of considerations like "in-network," then it would be entirely conceivable that the majority of medical procedures would involve price shopping. And such shopping around based on price and quality would improve things even for those who do not price shop. Feeling the pressure of market discipline would force providers to compete on quality and price. There are sites that try to be like yelp for healthcare, but you ultimately don't have any price transparency, not every doctor is listed, and you have to navigate a maze of insurance categories. In a saner world, we would have better transparency in healthcare than pizza delivery.
- coredog64 7y agoMy employer’s healthcare plan includes Castlight. It’s a mobile app that shows nearby in-network providers. If I need a procedure, I can search for that and get average prices.
- jessaustin 7y agoDentistry is also like this. Lots of people have some dental insurance, but it doesn't cover enough of the really costly procedures to make most patients ignore costs.