(Bloomberg) — Kansas City, Mo., and Indianapolis residents with private health plans face some of the widest disparities in U.S. hospital costs, often being charged twice as much as nearby facilities, a study finds.
The highest-priced hospitals in 13 cities studied are typically paid 60% more for inpatient services and almost double for outpatient care than the lowest-priced hospitals in the same communities, according to a study released today by the Center for Studying Health System Change. Hospitals with more market power have greater muscle in negotiations with insurers and can extract higher prices, the group finds.
