Ohio Receives "D" for Healthcare Cost Transparency
A new report jointly released by Catalyst for Payment Reform and the Health Care Incentives Improvement Institute gives Ohio a “D” for having poor transparency policies that make it difficult for patients to make informed choices before they purchase health care services. “We have made progress sharing information about the quality of care, with organizations like Bridges to Excellence and The Leapfrog Group leading the way and federal and state governments getting in on the act,” say Francois de Brantes, executive director
for Health Care Incentives Improvement Institute and Suzanne Delbanco, executive director for
 Catalyst for Payment Reform. “But with recent studies showing us that the price for an identical procedure within a market can vary seven-fold with no demonstrable difference in quality, price transparency is more important than ever." Overall, the report gives 29 states an “F” and seven a “D.” Only two states – Massachussetts and New Hampshire received an “A.” The authors go on to say that states can play an important role in ensuring that consumers have access to both quality and price information by setting policies and implementing laws that advance transparency. They further argue that consumers need this information because they are paying higher deductibles and co-pays out of their own pockets. “American consumers deserve to have as much information about the quality and price of their health care as they do about restaurants, cars, and household appliances,” they conclude. Click here to see the report. Ohio, under the leadership of the Kasich administration, became the first state Medicaid program to participate in Catalyst for Payment Reform (CPR) in January 2012. CPR is an independent, national non-profit organization that leverages the collective strength of private and public sector healthcare purchasers to achieve better value and quality in health care. The organization represents consumers, purchasers, labor, health care providers payers and policymakers;
On January 9, 2012, the Governor's Council on Health Care Payment Innovation adopted the following CPR principles as a starting point to prioritize and coordinate multi-payer health care payment innovation activities in Ohio:
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