ASHTABULA, Ohio — Happy New Year to Ohio healthcare consumers. You can finally afford affordable health care services and avoid exorbitant hospital costs, including: Facility fee $1,300, $12,000 for hernia surgery, $76,000 gallbladder removaland (in extreme cases) $4 million delivery.
On January 2nd, Governor DeWine signed into law the bipartisan Hospital Price Transparency Act, the strongest bill of its kind in the nation, requiring state hospitals to publish their cash and insurance plan prices online. Of note is the law Require hospitals to post prices in dollars and centsnot an unaccountable estimate that will result in a much higher final bill. Hospitals must comply within 90 days.
This legislation would finally lift the veil on pricing that forces consumers to pay for health care with blank checks. This predatory billing power has allowed hospitals and health insurance companies to collude behind the scenes to overcharge and profiteer. As a result, nearly half of Ohioans avoid careand almost 2 million have medical debt.
Upfront pricing allows patients, employers, and public entities such as school districts to choose higher-quality, less expensive care and benefit from competition. Cross-reference hospital prices and medical bills to ensure accuracy and correct overcharging. This pro-consumer law could revolutionize health care in the state.
Consider the story of Ashtabula Area City Schools, located in one of the poorest counties in the state. the district saved Over $2 million annually Since moving to a price transparent model several years ago, about 30% of annual health plan spending goes to health plans.
Under the district’s previous plan, it would have spent $10.5 million a year on employee health insurance (nearly 50% of the total payroll budget), with premiums increasing by double digits each year and teacher pay suppressed. , which was a burden on local taxpayers.
The district reversed these runaway costs by eliminating contradictory and opaque insurance models and purchasing the highest value care with the help of nurse navigators. For example, we discovered that you can get an MRI for just $700 at the Imaging Center, compared to $3,000 at other nearby hospitals.
These savings allow the plan to provide complex imaging services to employees such as teachers, cafeteria workers, and bus drivers without out-of-pocket costs.
Recognizing the success of this model, the City of Ashtabula has emulated it, and Ashtabula County could soon follow suit, creating a high-value healthcare domino effect in this underserved area.
Businesses can share the savings from price transparency with their employees in the form of higher wages and fewer payroll deductions. The public sector can share savings with taxpayers. Rather than being expropriated by Big Health, corporate profits, salaries, and taxes can stay in the community and help Main Street and people on fixed incomes.
“That means no cooking on Thursday nights,” said Lisa Love, a teacher at Ashtabula. “We’re going out to dinner.”
Bryce Heinbaugh is CEO of IEN Risk Management in Ashtabula, Ohio, where he advises employers and organizations on how to improve health plans and outcomes.Heather Martello/Martello Photography
However, not everyone has a nurse navigator who can manage the difficult and time-consuming process of implementing a direct contract.
Ohio’s new price transparency law democratizes these savings to all healthcare consumers who want to shop around. Technology developers plan to aggregate price disclosures for Ohio hospitals to make them more accessible and actionable. Allow patients to see significant price changes Get 10 times more of the same care from your fingertips.
Ohio’s new law affirms the right of all residents to know the actual price before treatment. Currently, it is the consumer who exercises this right and the state who enforces it. Doing so would significantly reduce Ohio’s exorbitant health care costs.
Bryce Heinbaugh is CEO of IEN Risk Management in Ashtabula, Ohio, where he advises employers and organizations on how to improve health plans and outcomes.
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