title: Price transparency for MRIs increased use of less costly providers and triggered provider competition.
abstract: To encourage patients to select high-value providers, an insurer-initiated price transparency program that focused on elective advanced imaging procedures was implemented. Patients having at least one outpatient magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan in 2010 or 2012 were divided according to their membership in commercial health plans participating in the program (the intervention group) or in nonparticipating commercial health plans (the reference group) in similar US geographic regions. Patients in the intervention group were informed of price differences among available MRI facilities and given the option of selecting different providers. For those patients, the program resulted in a $220 cost reduction (18.7 percent) per test and a decrease in use of hospital-based facilities from 53 percent in 2010 to 45 percent in 2012. Price variation between hospital and nonhospital facilities for the intervention group was reduced by 30 percent after implementation. Nonparticipating members residing in intervention areas also observed price reductions, which indicates increased price competition among providers. The program significantly reduced imaging costs. This suggests that patients select lower-price facilities when informed about available alternatives.
authors.affiliation: Sze-jung Wu is a senior research analyst at HealthCore, in Wilmington, Delaware.
authors.forename: Sze-jung
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Gosia Sylwestrzak is a research manager at HealthCore.
authors.forename: Gosia
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sylwestrzak
authors.affiliation: Christiane Shah is a vice president for solution management at AIM Specialty Health, in Chicago, Illinois.
authors.forename: Christiane
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Shah
authors.affiliation: Andrea DeVries (adevries@healthcore.com) is a director for payer and provider research at HealthCore.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: DeVries
mesh_terms: D000553:Ambulatory Care / Q000191:economics; D003132:Commerce; D003256:Community Participation; D017046:Cost Savings; D030881:Disclosure; D017048:Health Care Costs; D017722:Hospital Charges; D006801:Humans; D007348:Insurance, Health / Q000191:economics; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000191:economics*; D009513:New Hampshire
keywords: Consumer Issues; Cost of Health Care