100 Most Common Medicare Inpatient Stays Now are Publicly Available

Pricing by hospitals across the nation for treating the 100 most common Medicare inpatient stays now is publicly available from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.


CMS, which is trying to use its claims data to bring transparency to hospital pricing, also has announced a funding opportunity totaling $87 million to help states enhance their rate review programs and extend price transparency.
Data released on May 8, 2013, shows how vast prices can vary across the nation’s hospitals and local healthcare organizations. The average inpatient hospital charges for services that may be provided to treat heart failure range from $21,000 to $46,000 in Denver, and from $9,000 to $51,000 in Jackson, Miss. For example, average inpatient charges for services a hospital may provide in connection with a joint replacement (MS-DRG 470) range from a low of $5,300 at a hospital in Ada, Oklahoma, to a high of $223,000 at a hospital in Monterey Park, California.

Map Provided by CMS Even within the same geographic area, hospital charges for similar services can vary significantly.

Please refer to the following links for more information:

-CMS-released pricing data is available here
-With a fact sheet showing national variations in hospital charges here
-Grant Funding opportunities for states are here