Trump doubles down on price transparency in new executive order
Read Article: Healthcare Dive
Article Summary: The new executive order on price transparency mandates that hospitals and insurers disclose actual healthcare costs, including prescription drug prices, to empower patients with clear, standardized pricing. While this aims to improve patient decision-making, it poses operational risks for healthcare organizations that may face increased compliance costs and challenges in adjusting to new transparency requirements.
The Risks:
Price Transparency Compliance Risk: Hospitals face noncompliance risks with the new price transparency regulations, which could result in penalties and increased regulatory scrutiny. Failure to post accurate and standardized pricing exposes healthcare organizations to financial and legal risks. (Area: Legal and Insurance) (Category: Legal)
Operational Burden of Price Disclosure: The implementation of price transparency rules may increase administrative tasks, such as posting negotiated rates and creating machine-readable files, placing an operational strain on hospitals' IT systems and resources. (Area: Operations) (Category: Operational Change)
Weakened Negotiating Leverage due to Price Transparency Regulations: While price transparency could lead to consumer savings, it may also pressure hospitals to reduce prices on expensive procedures, while imposing administrative costs to comply with the new regulations, potentially affecting hospital revenues and financial stability. (Area: Revenue and Reimbursement) (Category: Commercial Contracting)