While early efforts to improve transparency in health care costs are targeting hospitals, expect the trend to continue to include laboratory test information as well. Federal The Department of Health and Human Services released for the first time data sets with county-level Medicare spending and utilization information, including comparisons of the charges for the 100 most common inpatient services and 30 common outpatient services. The Health Care Price Transparency Promotion Act of 2013, introduced in the U.S. Congress, proposes that state Medicaid plans should require disclosure of information on hospital charges and provide individuals with information about estimated out-of-pocket costs for health care services. Possible expansion of Medicare’s Hospital Compare Web site to include not only quality metrics, but also price data. Potentially requiring health plans participating in the health care marketplaces under the health care reform law to be more transparent. State Action According to Catalyst for Payment Reform, 34 states currently require reporting of hospital charges or reimbursement rates and more than 30 states are pursuing legislation to enhance price transparency in health care. Among these efforts: In August, North Carolina passed legislation requiring hospitals to provide public pricing information on 140 medical procedures and services. California, New […]