, Columnist
Transparency Is the Cure for High Hospital Prices
It’s still far too hard to learn what many hospital procedures cost. Laws can help, but public pressure is also necessary.
How much does it cost?
Photographer: Brandon Bell/Getty Images North AmericaIf you are tiring of the green energy revolution and can’t quite get on board with the mission to Mars, yet still would like to join a worthy cause with the potential to transform millions of lives, allow me to make a recommendation: transparent hospital pricing. It may sound less ambitious than big spaceships, but in a services-oriented economy it is at least as important.
It is hard to get a straight answer about prices for medical procedures in the US, unlike in much of the rest of the world. The US also has some of the world’s highest health-care costs, in part due to insufficient competition.