Hospitals Will Kill You (With Their Prices)

Today the government released data showing that hospitals' billings to Medicare vary tremendously for identical procedures, with no diagnostic or geographical rhyme or reason.  Although Medicare payments to hospitals are standardized and not impacted by these wild-ass bills, it's further evidence that our system is a mess.  Too many of our health care providers just make up outrageous "sucker' prices, toss it all against the wall, and hope that some of it sticks.  As one hospital finance expert put it, "These costs have no rational basis at all."

For an informative article, click the link:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/08/business/hospital-billing-varies-wildly-us-data-shows.html?pagewanted=2&_r=0&ref=general&src=me

Also, see Buster's archives of 2/26/13, "The Real Problem With American Health Care", for more on hospitals' "chargemaster list" of highway-robbery pricing.

None of this, by the way, has the slightest thing to do with Obamacare.  Nor does an increase in your health insurance premium.  Obamacare expanded access and curbed abuses, but attempts at meaningful cost control were shot down by your helpful GOP legislators.

Anyone for single-payer, universal coverage?  Kinda like Medicare, but for everyone, not just oldsters?  I'm in!