Stop Accepting High Healthcare Prices
Since 1970, healthcare spending in the U.S. has increased from $353 per person to $11,600 per person a year. Why do we keep accepting excruciatingly high healthcare prices when cheaper options exist? Why don’t we compare the pricing of various healthcare providers like we do for virtually every other purchase that we make? The main reason that healthcare costs cannot be compared is that countless providers don’t even display their prices. It’s remarkable that our country has put up with this for so long. You would never walk into a store and fill up your cart with items without knowing their prices, yet that’s exactly what we do with our healthcare. Even those who realize that their healthcare providers are the most expensive option often choose not to consider other providers because they believe that high cost equates to high quality. This is simply not true. A 2010 study by the Massachusetts Attorney General found zero correlation between more expensive healthcare providers and higher quality care.
Why Are Prices So High?
If you’re not paying for quality, what are you paying for? Healthcare costs don’t just cover the procedure itself. You are also charged for the facility size, the provider’s “name brand,” geographic convenience, and the provider’s market share. The healthcare industry lacks competition. For example, areas with only one hospital owner typically charge 15% more than areas with four or more hospital owners. Did you know that many hospital procedures can be performed in surgery centers? On average, hospitals charge 2.7 times more than surgery centers. Healthcare providers benefit by keeping their prices hidden. Healthcare monopolies have no incentive to lower their prices to compete with cheaper providers because patients do not even realize how much they are paying the monopolies. Healthcare prices are often even hidden from doctors. Doctors may refer a patient to another provider without realizing how much that provider charges or order a medical device without knowing its price. In fact, in 2014 it was determined that Orthopedic surgeons only correctly estimated the cost of a device 21% of the time. Healthcare consumers are ultimately the ones that pay the expenses of such devices.
Let Us Lower Your Costs
To put it bluntly, it’s stupid to overpay for healthcare. That’s why MotivHealth helps you find the best care at the best price. Our SmartPay program allows members to see how much their procedure costs at various in-network providers before choosing where to receive care. When you realize that some high-quality providers offer the same procedure for a much lower price, you’ll stop overspending on healthcare. You get to choose.
Savings vary depending on the procedure, but members with a SmartPay-eligible procedure can save an average of $100 – $5,000 in reduced out-of-pocket costs, often even more. For example, members who use SmartPay for an MRI will generally receive an incentive of $250. For a knee replacement, there’s an incentive of up to $3,000.
Like any of our member programs, SmartPay is simple. Just give us a call at 844-234-4472 before your procedure, and we’ll help you identify a SmartPay-eligible provider and let you know your out-of-pocket responsibility and potential savings. We’ll even schedule the appointment for you and follow up with you when the date of the procedure approaches.
Your money belongs in your pockets, and we’re here to help you keep it there.
Sources:
“Getting Clear About Price Transparency”
“What’s to Blame for the High Cost of Healthcare?”