Re:Most hospitals aren't complying with price transparency rule
by loonster on Tuesday June 15, 2021 @12:18PM
(#27517608)
That sounds like something an insurance company could fill the void. Other industries have insurance charged for each job based on what the job entails. Surgery should be no different.
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Re:Most hospitals aren't complying with price transparency rule
by ethbr0 on Tuesday June 15, 2021 @12:36PM
(#27517862)
The issue with US health insurance in general is that (a) it's not understood by the public as insurance, but rather as access to group rates, & (b) it's utility is proportional to the number of counterparties it covers (more doctors, more useful), which opens it up to a huge amount of abuse (doctor you've only done 3 transactions with over the past 5 years is vastly inflating fees on all).
What should probably happen is something akin to the housing market: backstop consumer insurance companies with re-insurers (semi-supported by the government) who buy and back compliant policies and providers.
Allowing consumer insurance companies to bound their risk and offer more reasonable rates.
I think ACA has a provision in there for catastrophic cases falling off the insurers' books onto someone else's, but it's been awhile since I read through it.