Feb 16 2012
A new report looks at autoworker health care claims to find clues as to why spending varies by region and finds that hospital price variation made up one-third of the difference.
Kaiser Health News: Autoworkers' Health Claims Offer Clues To Regional Spending Variations
Why does health care cost more in some areas of the country than others? It's a question researchers have struggled with for decades, because the potential answers -; unnecessary surgeries, generally bad health of patients or high prices charged by providers -; each carry different prescriptions for how to hold down medical costs. Now a new study from the Center for Studying Health System Change takes a novel approach by comparing claims among 218,000 autoworkers in 19 metropolitan areas (Rau, 2/15).
Modern Healthcare: Report Notes Impact Of Hospital Price Variation
Hospital price variation accounted for one-third of the difference in health spending in 19 communities, even after accounting for geographic differences in wages and rent, according to a report. ... Spending per person ranged from $4,500 to $9,000 with price accounting for 33 percent of the difference, according to the report by Chapin White, a senior researcher for the center (Evans, 2/15).
 This article was reprinted from kaiserhealthnews.org with permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent news service, is a program of the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonpartisan health care policy research organization unaffiliated with Kaiser Permanente.
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