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A comment on U.S. health care's widespread overbilling problem. Parent comment

Re:U.S. health care's widespread overbilling problem by sidlls on Monday July 10, 2017 @02:52PM (#14738623)
Price transparency is not going to fix much, if anything. It may induce rage increased blood pressure on the front end (prior to receiving service), but ultimately health care is often a "must have."

Having a price list in hand doesn't suddenly make the price conscious consumer more of an expert regarding the necessity of various services estimated. Nor does it really encourage competition between competitors.

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Re:U.S. health care's widespread overbilling problem by softawre on Monday July 10, 2017 @03:20PM (#14738833)
You seem to be missing that people want to compare prices at various firms, as well as deciding whether to have a procedure.
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Re:U.S. health care's widespread overbilling problem by sidlls on Monday July 10, 2017 @04:13PM (#14739238)
No, I'm not missing that. It doesn't make as much of a difference as you'd think. There are plenty of companies and organizations in this space who offer "price transparency" services to varying degrees of accuracy.
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Re:U.S. health care's widespread overbilling problem by froindt on Monday July 10, 2017 @05:58PM (#14740066)
There is significant difference in the price different places charge for services. It's not necessarily deciding whether or not to do the treatment, but can also encompass consumers being cognizant of cost and choosing providers who are cheaper.

Here is a planet money podcast which goes through some examples of significant expenses being saved.

http://www.npr.org/sections/money/2015/10/02/445371930/episo...

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