Today’s Sunday News article goes into more discussion of the issue of pricing.

by CINDY STAUFFER | Staff Writer | The Sunday News, Lancaster, PA

“If you need hip replacement surgery, you will face a wide range of charges here, depending on the hospital you choose.

“Lancaster Regional Medical Center charged the most for major joint replacement surgery, $60,434, of the four hospitals here, according to a recent federal report on 2011 charges.

“Across town, Lancaster General Hospital charged the least, $37,761, about $23,000 less than Regional.

“But hang on to your crutches, patients. There’s more.

“Though LGH charged the least, Medicare, the federal insurance for the elderly paid it the most of all the hospitals here, $13,400.

“Confused yet? Join the club.

“The federal government’s recent release of hospital charges and Medicare payments for common procedures at 3,300 hospitals is raising many questions.

“The report shines a light on the seemingly illogical nature of health care charges here and across the country, as the nation readies to implement a giant national health care reform bill.

“The data make ‘concrete something that everyone who has had an experience with the health care system already knows intuitively,’ said Regional’s chief financial officer, Wesley Knight, ‘which is that hospital bills often do not appear to make common sense.’

Continue reading this Sunday News article here.

More:

The Confusion of Hospital Pricing – The New York Times blog

“The Healthcare Blue Book is a free consumer guide to help you determine fair prices in your area for healthcare services. If you pay for your own healthcare, have a high deductible or need a service your insurance does not fully cover, we can help. The Blue Book will help you find fair prices for surgery, hospital stays, doctor visits, medical tests and much more.”

Medicare Provider Charge Data – If you are handy with spreadsheets, look here. “As part of the Obama administration’s work to make our health care system more affordable and accountable, data are being released that show significant variation across the country and within communities in what hospitals charge for common inpatient services.”The data provided here include hospital-specific charges for the more than 3,000 U.S. hospitals that receive Medicare Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) payments for the top 100 most frequently billed discharges, paid under Medicare based on a rate per discharge using the Medicare Severity Diagnosis Related Group (MS-DRG) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2011. These DRGs represent almost 7 million discharges or 60 percent of total Medicare IPPS discharges.”