Nov. CPI shows consumer hospital prices up 0.3%

Hospital prices paid by consumers climbed 0.3% in November and 4.8% in the 12 months through November, according to seasonally adjusted data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Consumer Price Index. The CPI for physicians rose 0.2% in November and 4.4% in the 12-month period, also on a seasonally adjusted basis. The broad seasonally adjusted CPI for all goods and services rose 2% in November and was up 3.6% over the 12-month period. The CPI tracks changes in prices paid by urban consumers for a representative sample of goods and services. The PPI, released last week, tracks changes in producers' prices. For hospitals, it also rose 0.3% in November. -- by Paul Barr