The CMS price disclosure rule, which took effect Jan. 1, aims to save Americans money by allowing them to price shop for healthcare services. It requires hospitals to post a machine-readable file with the negotiated rates for all items and services and display the prices of 300 shoppable services in a consumer-friendly format.
Researchers surveyed Americans to see if they were aware of the rule, and found that only 9 percent of people ages 18-64 knew hospitals were required to disclose their prices online. This number rose slightly, to 10 percent, for people ages 65 and older.
When asked if they or a family member have searched online for a hospital service’s price in the past six months, 23 percent of respondents ages 18-29 said yes, 16 percent of respondents ages 30-49 said yes, 10 percent of respondents ages 50-64 said yes, and 9 percent of respondents ages 65 and older said yes.
