Better Care Not Always Better Business

Healthcare not incentivized to eliminate profitable procedures that may not benefit patients

Transparency is a touchy subject in healthcare. It’s one of the last market strongholds desperately clutching to its principles of price secrecy, and it won’t go down without a fight. 

But many experts say this stands as one of many reasons the industry continues to drag its feet in the innovation arena. A provider generally functions as a profit-driven business, and if the consumer remains unable to compare hospital prices and outcomes, the chances of crafting effective incentives to improve quality and reduce costs are effectively nearing zilch. 

Are hospitals with the most prestigious reputation necessarily producing the best outcomes? Can a patient go to another hospital and have a medical procedure done, same quality but for a fraction of the cost? Many emphatically nod their heads yes. But have fun prying the data out of industry’s clenched fists.