Hospitals usually justify mergers claiming it will help lower healthcare costs for patients, but this recent study shows how healthcare costs generally increase post-merger. This means pre-service comparison shopping based on your plan’s historical claims data is more important in areas where hospitals have merged. Medxoom’s price-comparison technology helps patients and employers compare healthcare costs and quality ratings before procedures to save 10%+ annually.
From Advisory Board:
“The Petris analysis looked at the 25 metropolitan areas with the highest rates of consolidation between 2010 and 2013 and found that, in most areas, the average price of a hospital stay increased between 11% and 54% in the years following a consolidation.
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The New Haven area saw both the biggest decline in competition during the study period and the biggest increases in prices, according to the Petris Center. As Yale New Haven expanded, hospital admission prices jumped 25% between 2012 and 2014, compared to just 7% elsewhere in the state.“
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