Trump Signs Executive Order Calling For Upfront Disclosure Of Hospital Costs

President Trump on Monday signed an executive order demanding the upfront disclosure by hospitals of the actual prices for common tests and procedures.

Trump’s order also requires that patients be told ahead of time what their out-of-pocket costs like deductibles and copays will be for many procedures.

“This landmark initiative continues our work to put American patients first,” Trump said during remarks at the White House before signing the order. “We are fundamentally changing the nature of the health care marketplace.”

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar told reporters before Trump’s remarks that the idea is to give patients practical information that they can use to help save money. For example, if a hospital charges your insurer $3,500 for a type of echocardiogram and the same test costs $550 in a doctor’s office, you might go for the lower-price procedure to save on copays.

The executive order calls for a rule-making process by federal agencies, which typically takes months or even years. The details of what information will have to be disclosed and how it will be made available to patients must be worked out as part of writing the regulations. That will involve a complex give-and-take with hospitals, insurers and others affected. Consumers will have to wait to see whether the results live up to the administration’s promises.

Trump signs off on nationwide vaccine schedule review as CDC withdraws infant Hep B guidance: ‘Fast track’

Two arrested after dozens of guns, including ‘cop-killer’ model, found in spare tire at southern border: DPS

Pastor Says Barron Trump Is ‘Very Close to Putting His Faith in Christ’ After Lengthy Conversation

88-year-old Army veteran working at grocery store receives over $1.7M in donations after viral video

ICE arrests Azerbaijani national with multiple criminal convictions, including animal cruelty, arson

JetBlue Plane That Abruptly Lost Altitude and Made Emergency Landing Likely Hit by Cosmic Ray: Expert

JD Vance Responds as Media Seeks to Stoke Controversy Over His Wife’s Wedding Ring

Fox News Politics Newsletter: Capitol Hill revolt threatens Trump’s Venezuela playbook

Dem-backed ‘dignity’ bill could strip ICE of detention powers, erase immigration enforcement, critics warn

Disgraceful: Duchess Meghan Accused of Stealing $1,700 Dress from Photoshoot, Using the ‘Archiving’ of Her Royal Clothing as the Excuse

Macron denies ‘everything’ about US betrayal comments as White House hosts Ukraine for marathon talks in Miami

Watch: Stephen A. Smith Gushes About ‘Positively Brilliant’ Trump Who Keeps Foiling Democrats at Every Turn

Disgraced ex-Sen. Bob Menendez banned from holding any public office in New Jersey

Breaking: Trump Wins FIFA Peace Prize, Calls it ‘One of the Great Honors of My Life’

SCOTUS to review Trump executive order on birthright citizenship

Lack of information on health care prices is a widespread problem . It’s confusing for patients, and experts say it’s also one of the major factors that push up U.S. costs. The same test or procedure, in the same city, can cost widely different amounts depending on who is performing it and who is paying the bill. Hospital list prices, which are available, don’t reflect what they actually get paid by insurers and government programs.

The health insurance industry said disclosing negotiated prices will only encourage hospitals that are now providing deeper discounts to try to raise their rates to match the top-tier facilities. “Publicly disclosing competitively negotiated proprietary rates will reduce competition and push prices higher — not lower — for consumers, patients, and taxpayers,” Matt Eyles, head of the industry group America’s Health Insurance Plans, said in a statement.

While the prices Medicare pays are publicly available, private insurers’ negotiated rates generally are not. Industry officials say such contractual information is tantamount to trade secrets and should remain private.

Azar pushed back against that argument, saying insurers do ultimately disclose their payment rates when they send individual patients an “explanation of benefits.” That’s the technical term for the form that patients get after they’ve had a procedure or seen the doctor.