Healthcare systems are taking steps to address the “defensibility” and transparency of the way they bill for services—an issue that came into the spotlight earlier this year in the wake of a controversial Time magazine cover story.
But it's not only uninsured patients—whose stories were much of the focus of Steven Brill's 24,000-word article, “Bitter Pill”—who are asking questions about why their hospital bills are running in the tens of thousands of dollars for short stays and simple procedures.
Hospital pricing has also been a key issue for payers, particularly America's Health Insurance Plans, which has pegged price increases as a major factor behind rising premiums.
“I think there's a real movement toward more strategic thinking about pricing and its defensibility,” said Keith Neilson, CEO of Craneware, which makes software for healthcare billing, chargemaster management, auditing and Medicare compliance.