How much will that surgery cost? Hospital price lists remain largely unhelpful

NPR – Monday, March 31, 2025
By Daniel Chang

It’s a holy grail of health care: forcing the industry to reveal prices negotiated between health plans and hospitals — information that had long been treated as a trade secret. And among the flurry of executive orders President Trump signed during his first five weeks back in office was a promise to “Make America Healthy Again” by giving patients accurate health care prices.

The goal is to force hospitals and health insurance companies to make it easier for consumers to compare the actual prices of medical procedures and prescription drugs. Trump gave his administration until the end of May to come up with a standard and a mechanism to make sure the health care industry complies.

But Trump’s 2025 order is also a symbol of how little progress the country has made since he issued a similar directive nearly six years ago. Consumers find it only partially useful, and the quality of the information is spotty.

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