Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Free Market at Work: Okla. City Hospital Causes Bidding War by Posting Surgery Prices Online

Via Daily Timewaster

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For most Americans, the cost of undergoing surgery can cost anywhere between $1 and $1,000+ dollars. The prices vary as all sorts of factors affect the final price.

That is, the price of surgery is a total mystery unless you go to the Surgery Center of Oklahoma in Oklahoma City. They post their prices online.

Founded nearly 15 years ago by Dr. Keith Smith and Dr. Steven Lantier, the clinic has thrived on its promise of “price transparency,” KFOR-TV reports.

“What we’ve discovered is health care really doesn’t cost that much,” said Smith. “What people are being charged for is another matter altogether.”

The company started posting its all-inclusive surgery prices online four years ago:

“When we first started we thought we were about half the price of the hospitals,” Dr. Lantier said. “Then we found out we’re less than half price. Then we find out we’re a sixth to an eighth of what their prices are. I can’t believe the average person can afford health care at these prices.”

By being upfront about their prices, the KFOR-TV report explains, the clinic hoped to win over customers by defeating its competition in a price war.

The Oklahoma doctors were successful on both accounts.

More @ The Blaze

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