New Health Care Price Transparency Tool Launches

By Consumers for Quality Care, on March 30, 2022

A new online platform to help consumers compare hospital prices, Turquoise Health, has launched in its beta development stage, according to Healthcare Dive.

Turquoise Health uses cost data from machine-readable files made public by hospitals as part of compliance with a federal price transparency rule that went into effect in January 2021. The rule is designed to make it easier for consumers to comparison shop for medical services with the aim of lowering health care costs in the U.S. Many of the prices consumers can check are for procedures like knee replacements or MRIs that are scheduled in advance.

Earlier this month, Healthcare Dive reported that less than 15 percent of U.S. hospitals are in compliance with the new price transparency rules. While platforms like Turquoise Health are making it easier for consumers to better understand the cost of their health care, CQC urges regulators and lawmakers to hold hospitals accountable for failing to meet these price transparency rules and put consumers first.