by ELISSA SALAMY, The National Desk
WASHINGTON (TND) — Three of the largest for-profit hospital chains in the U.S. made a combined $120 billion in 2021, while violating federal transparency laws, according to an investigation by the nonprofit group Patient Rights Advocate.
"The Trump administration proposed and executed on a rule where hospitals, for the first time in history, would be mandated to post their prices for services," said Adam Andrzejewski from OpenTheBooks.com. "The Biden administration last fall finalized that rule."
As a result of increased price transparency, patients can shop around to find the best deal for medical procedures.
"This wouldn't be revolutionary if this was at the grocery store or at the gas station," said Andrzejewski to The National Desk's Jan Jeffcoat.
The Affordable Care Act, implemented in 2021, requires hospitals to be transparent about what they charge patients. The report found that only 14 percent of hospitals reviewed were compliant with these regulations, and only 0.5 percent of hospitals owned by the three largest U.S. hospital systems – HCA Healthcare, CommonSpirit Health, and Ascension – were compliant.
None of the HCA Healthcare system’s 118 hospitals were compliant, the report found, and those three large systems made a combined $120 billion.