Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLC

With the prevalence of high-deductible and consumer-directed health plans on the rise, consumers are on the hook for greater proportions of their medical bills through cost-sharing and co-insurance.

Consumers have a vested interest in—and a right to know—what their care will cost them. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently finalized two groundbreaking regulations that require hospitals and health plans to disclose a range of price information on an easily accessible public website, including standard charges for all services and a consumer-friendly display of at least 300 shoppable services that consumers can schedule in advance. A growing number of pioneering hospitals across the country are already sharing price information, demonstrating that the new requirements are achievable. In 2021, NYHealth awarded Manatt, Phelps & Phillips a grant to review the extent to which hospitals in New York State are implementing the rules and recommend strategies to support further replication.

Under this grant, Manatt identified best practices among hospitals and shared feedback with hospitals, regulators, and policymakers about initial achievements and replicable implementation strategies. Manatt developed an assessment tool to review hospitals’ websites, collect data, and document their implementation of the rules. Manatt then analyzed and interpreted the data to understand and compare how hospitals are implementing different elements of the rules. It shared preliminary results with hospital associations and solicited input and feedback on methodology and findings to ensure that results were complete and fair. Manatt summarized the results and best practices, with recommendations that hospitals across the State and nation can adopt. Manatt worked with NYHealth to widely share its findings and best practices with hospitals, regulators, consumer groups, and policymakers statewide.

Read the report “Assessing Implementation of Hospital Price Transparency.”