Information Technology Creates Transparency in an Area of Healthcare That Has Been Traditionally Shrouded in Secrecy, Providing Information and Many Choices for the Consumer

Fort Lauderdale, Florida, March 30, 2015 (Newswire.com) - Healthcare-informatics.com posted an article recently that shed light on what has been called ‘The transparency movement’. The article shared information about The Health Care Cost Institute, a non-profit organization that just launched a consumer-focused website which provides consumers with cost information and data associated with typical health conditions and services. The information gathered by The Health Care Cost Institute was derived from claims data from multiple insurance companies.

Dr. Steven R. Gerst: Shopping for healthcare services is now a feasible option for consumers, thanks to information technology and health informatics.

What was once considered so complicated that it was practically impossible, is all going to change now, thanks to Guroo, the website / valuable consumer tool that can provide cost information both locally and internationally, as well as other valuable data regarding the quality of healthcare services for conditions like knee pain, or services for childbirth, MRIs, or even a physician’s office visit.  

The Heath Care Cost Institute (HCCI) gathers their data from 40 million insured individuals that carry health insurance through carriers like Aetna, Humana, United Healthcare and others. The HCCI is approaching more payers to participate. This website will be free to consumers to use and comparison shop for specific healthcare products and services that match their needs and fit their budget.

This isn’t just the beginning of what’s been referred to as ‘the transparency movement’. As reported by healthcare-informatics.com, many gains have been made in this area. The idea of cost transparency through information technology started picking up steam around 2013. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) chose to release Medicare hospital charge information, and many payers have been following their lead.

Although there seems to be mixed opinions on whether this is effective in reducing costs and improving the quality of patient care, it certainly has the potential to create a competitive market in the sector of healthcare services in the United States. It was also reported that the HCCI plans on improving the quality of the information it provides, as well as its reach to consumers, and has hopes to add a Spanish language version as well as prescription costs to the tool in the coming year. The HCCI also plans to work with states that are a part of payer claims databases (APCD) initiatives, as they work to offer price and quality transparency information.

Dr. Steven R. Gerst: Information Technology is changing healthcare in significant ways, including removing the shroud of secrecy that has kept the cost of private healthcare under the radar from consumers for so many years.

As more information is made available to the consumer, a point of reference will be created in which consumers will be able to draw from. Reference pricing is the cost the consumer can expect to pay for a service. This component could help contain healthcare costs in the United States, according to Princeton University Professor Uwe Reinhardt, Ph.D., an expert in healthcare economics, and an advocate for the use of electronic information technology to improve the transparency of private healthcare costs.

Reference pricing also can benefit the healthcare provider, who can utilize this information when considering ordering costly tests.

Dr. Gerst was formerly the Regional Medical Director for what is now PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP, and also President of the PPO Divison of Columbia/HCA- The Healthcare Company under Florida’s Governor, Rick Scott.  He is Dean Emeritus of the Masters of Science in Applied Health Informatics for Bryan University (Los Angeles, Sacramento, Toronto, Phoenix).  He is currently employed by the University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine, Office of the Chief Innovation Officer & Vice Provost for Innovation as an Entrepreneur-In-Residence, and consults in the area at both a Medical Device Company where he is Chief Medical Officer, and a Pharmaceutical Company where he serves on the Scientific Advisory Board.  He is actively engaged with integration and population health projects with Epic and Cerner, and serves on Cerner’s Physicians Community. For more information on the impact of health informatics and information technology as it plays a role in today’s healthcare industry in the United States, visit: http://stevenrgerst.com.