HCCI Reports
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Commercial Prices for Ground Ambulance are Double Medicare Rates
Read more: Commercial Prices for Ground Ambulance are Double Medicare RatesAmbulances contribute to urgent lifesaving and life-enhancing medical care, but the unplanned nature of this essential service can lead to high unexpected costs to patients. This HCCI data brief focuses on ground ambulances, which make up 98% of all ambulance trips, and builds upon earlier work that explored 10-year trends in ambulance prices, utilization, spending,…
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Commercial inpatient hospital price growth driven by system affiliation and nonprofit-status hospitals
Tags: Health Affairs
Read more: Commercial inpatient hospital price growth driven by system affiliation and nonprofit-status hospitalsRecent data from the Health Care Cost Institute (HCCI) show that growth in hospitals’ commercial inpatient prices was higher in system-affiliated and non-profit hospitals from 2012-2021. Key Findings: In the backdrop of a wave of hospital mergers, system-affiliated non-profit hospitals account for more than half of short-term general acute care hospitals in the US (from…
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Five years since US first biosimilar market entry, first signs of savings attributed to biosimilars in the employer-sponsored insurance population
Read more: Five years since US first biosimilar market entry, first signs of savings attributed to biosimilars in the employer-sponsored insurance populationBiologic drugs treat a range of diseases such as cancer, diabetes, retinal diseases, Crohn’s disease and many other conditions. Despite accounting for use by just 2% of Americans, spending on biologics is a major driver of drug spending in the United States. Biologics often come with a hefty price tag; for example, the most commonly…
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Price Markups for Clinical Labs: Employer-based Insurance Pays Hospital Outpatient Departments 3x Than Physician Offices and Independent Labs for Identical Tests
Read more: Price Markups for Clinical Labs: Employer-based Insurance Pays Hospital Outpatient Departments 3x Than Physician Offices and Independent Labs for Identical TestsThe Health Care Cost Institute (HCCI) in collaboration with West Health conducted an analysis of the high prices that employer-based insurance pays hospital outpatient departments for clinical lab tests. We found that insurers are paying, on average, 3 times more for common lab tests such as blood and urine test when billed by hospital outpatient…
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Welcome to HealthPrices.Org! HCCI’s Free Price Transparency Tool
Read more: Welcome to HealthPrices.Org! HCCI’s Free Price Transparency ToolBuilding on a commitment to health care price transparency that spans more than a decade, the Health Care Cost Institute is excited to introduce HealthPrices.Org (formerly Guroo), a free health care price transparency tool that shows consumers the average prices for health care services in their local metropolitan area. Access to data on prices can…
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Obesity Treatments Vary Between ESI and Medicaid Populations
Read more: Obesity Treatments Vary Between ESI and Medicaid PopulationsAccording to the most recent year of data available, an estimated 42% of adults have obesity and almost 20% of children are diagnosed with obesity. It is well documented that obesity prevalence and associated health care costs continue to rise. The Kaiser Family Foundation has estimated the average annual health spending for people enrolled in commercial insurance…
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HCCI and the National Kidney Foundation Partner to Create Chronic Kidney Disease Dashboard
Read more: HCCI and the National Kidney Foundation Partner to Create Chronic Kidney Disease DashboardHCCI collaborated with the National Kidney Foundation and The DataFace to develop a national and state-level multi-payer dashboard that examines the current state of Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) in the US and highlights the gaps in CKD-related care. Our interactive tool allows users to examine the rates of CKD testing and diagnosis among people at-risk…
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Data Brief: Menopause Diagnosis Steadily Increased from 2018-2022
Read more: Data Brief: Menopause Diagnosis Steadily Increased from 2018-2022Menopause is clinically defined as the end of a female’s menstrual cycle, but for many, this stage of life is marked by uncertainty and confusion. It is a period where information is vague, experience is poorly understood, and it leaves many women feeling isolated as they navigate the complex changes of aging. Each year, nearly…
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One In Five People With Employer-Sponsored Insurance Do Not Use Any Health Care Services
Read more: One In Five People With Employer-Sponsored Insurance Do Not Use Any Health Care ServicesThe amount of health care services people use varies widely across the population and can change year to year. People may require a higher amount of care in one year and fewer services the next. Although “high utilizers” are often discussed, there are people who do not use any services throughout the year. Other than…
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HCCI Research Finds The Lower Costs, More Transparency Act Targets Substantial Portion of Administered Drug Spending
Read more: HCCI Research Finds The Lower Costs, More Transparency Act Targets Substantial Portion of Administered Drug SpendingThe Lower Costs, More Transparency Act (H.R. 5378) currently before Congress aims to increase price transparency in health care and address the high cost of prescription drugs. One of the provisions of the bill would change the way Medicare pays for physician administered drugs. Currently, Medicare pays a higher price for drugs that are administered…