More Evidence of Health Care Price Variation in California
A new study published in BMJ Open by researchers at the University of California San Francisco finds huge variation in the cost of having a baby in California, findings similar to those of our July 2012 report on health care charge variation.
A new study published in BMJ Open by Dr. Renee Hsia of the University of California San Francisco and her colleagues finds huge variation in the cost of having a baby in California. The amount charged by hospitals for an uncomplicated vaginal delivery ranged from $3,296 to $37,227 across the state, while the charged for an uncomplicated C-section ranged from $8,312 to $70,908. The researchers concluded that the charge variation is “not well explained by observable patient or hospital characteristics.”
The findings of this study are similar to those of our July 2012 report, Your Price May Vary. We found huge variation in hospital charges for the dozen most common surgeries, including vaginal and C-section births—with little relationship to the quality of care or the outcomes.
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Elizabeth Ridlington
Associate Director and Senior Policy Analyst, Frontier Group
Elizabeth Ridlington is associate director and senior policy analyst with Frontier Group. She focuses primarily on global warming, toxics, health care and clean vehicles, and has written dozens of reports on these and other subjects. Elizabeth graduated with honors from Harvard with a degree in government. She joined Frontier Group in 2002. She lives in Northern California with her son.
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