Price Transparency and Patient Advocacy

At the 2022 Healthcare Advocate Summit, Jerilynn Arneson, PharmD, BCOP, discussed the lack of transparency in hospital pricing and payor contracting, and the ways in which it affects patients’ out of pocket costs.

Recent research found that across 53 hospitals, there was a 10-fold difference in the cost of the same procedure—coronary artery bypass graft (CABG)—with prices ranging from $44,000 to $448,000, and no correlation between price and quality of care.

“The health care field is the only place where you can’t get an estimate of what you’re going to [pay] upfront,” she said. “You wouldn’t buy an airline ticket, get on the flight, and then be billed afterwards—and the bill is $4000 because they needed to use extra fuel. Nowhere else would this be allowed, except in our health care system.”

Advocates who work directly with patients and medical staff provide critical insights crucial to improving the patient journey. The Healthcare Advocate Summit fills a gap for advocates, creating a space where advocate voices drive conversations around solutions for medication access issues faced in the health care industry.

Full sessions from the 2022 Healthcare Advocate Summit are available to purchase on demand. To learn more about the 2023 Healthcare Advocate Summit, taking place September 6 to 8, 2023 in New Orlans, Louisiana, visit healthcareadvocatesummit.com.