In the United States, the cost of health care continues to be a maze for payors, insurance companies and practitioners. However, if you are from South Carolina, you may have one of the best resources in the health care industry: a statewide pricing website.
This online resource was launched last week and it is expected to have as much health data as possible. So far the website has details on which practices saw a profit or net loss in the last five years as well as which facilities accept Medicare and Medicaid payments, Government Technology reported.
One of the biggest advantages of schealthdata.org will be identifying exactly how much it will cost to do a procedure at one hospital in comparison to another. Although this information is not available on the website right now, it is expected to be a component of the portal within three months. Accounts receivable services that are trying to identify ways to appropriately bill patients can benefit from this resource.
"This is an important step in the ongoing conversation about how we deliver and pay for care in our state and across the country, and how we can purchase the most health at the least cost," South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Director Tony Keck added.
It is unclear if other states will choose to follow South Carolina's example, but this amount of transparency can transform how practices will decide to charge for medical services in the future. Unfortunately, most states don't have much information to create a website at this time, Fierce Health Finance explained.
However, no matter how high or low the medical bill is, some patients may decide to protest against paying for their procedures. Outsourcing medical claims management can alleviate this financial burden.