Health Care Price Transparency: Let’s Reward Patients for Shopping

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heritage.org

Edmund Haislmaier
Rules exist to be followed, not ignored. Or at least, that’s what most people think. But in many cases, hospitals and insurers haven’t been following the rules—and the government has been letting them get away with it.

During Trump’s first term, the administration pursued health care price transparency regulations. But under Biden, the administration didn’t do much to implement or enforce those rules.

Those price transparency regulations implement provisions enacted by Congress in 2010. There continues to be substantial bipartisan support in Congress for requiring public disclosure of the costs of medical services. In December 2023, the House of Representatives voted 320-71 to pass legislation that included additional price transparency provisions (though the Senate never acted on that bill).

Now, President Trump is putting health care price transparency back on the agenda. Recently, he ordered executive agencies to step up implementation and enforcement of these transparency regulations. This means non-compliant hospitals and insurers may actually be forced to follow the existing rules requiring public disclosure of medical services’ costs.

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This is a positive change—one that Congress should reinforce legislatively. But Congress should also build on this change by creating incentives to ensure that price transparency ultimately leads to patient savings.

In theory, by requiring medical providers and insurers to make prices public, the government will enable patients to shop for care—creating competition that will put downward pressure on prices.

Yet making this pricing information publicly available is one thing; patients actually using that information when making decisions is another thing entirely.

Not only that, but price transparency directly challenges entrenched health care business models, which center around opaque financial arrangements and hidden cross-subsidies.

Because of this, any further legislation requiring health care price disclosure should also incentivize patients to actually use that information in decision making,  » Read More
https://www.heritage.org/health-care-reform/commentary/health-care-price-transparency-lets-reward-patients-shopping

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Registration

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Online Shopping

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Online Advertisements

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Responses to Email Inquiries

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Voluntary Customer Surveys

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Promotions

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Special Cases

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Browser Level Information

TheFoliPrime, Inc. web servers may automatically collect information about a site user’s IP address, browser type and the URL that you just came from (whether this URL is on the website or not) and which URL you next go to (whether this URL is on the website or not) by reading this information from the user’s browser (information provided by every user’s browser). This information is collected in a database and used – in an aggregated, anonymous manner – in our internal analysis of traffic patterns within our website. This information is automatically logged by most websites. The FoliPrime, Inc. may also use a third party to collect information, including through the use of web beacons.

Notice of Compliance to California Residents: Your California Privacy Rights Under the California Online Privacy Protection Act and the California Business and Professions Code

This privacy policy identifies the categories of personally identifiable information that our company collects through our web site or online service, about individual consumers who use or visit our company’s commercial web site or online service and the categories of third-party persons or entities with whom our company may share that personally identifiable information.

Our company does not maintain a process for an individual consumer who uses or visits our commercial web site or online service to review and request changes to any of his or her personally identifiable information that is collected through our web site or online service.

See the section below entitled “Revisions to this Policy” for a description of the process by which our company notifies consumers who use or visit our commercial web site or online service of material changes to our company’s privacy policy for this web site or online service.

The effective date of this privacy policy is listed at the end of this privacy policy under the heading, “Last updated.”

For the purposes of this policy and California compliance the following definitions apply:

Depending on the visitor’s activity, in our commercial web site or online service, the following “personally identifiable information” may be collected, in addition to information set forth in other sections of this document.

The term “personally identifiable information” means individually identifiable information about an individual consumer collected online by our company from an individual and maintained by our company in an accessible form, and may include any of the following:

  1. A first and last name.
  2. A home or other physical address, including street name and name of a city or town.
  3. An e-mail address.
  4. A telephone number.
  5. A social security number.
  6. Any other identifier that permits the physical or online contacting of a specific individual.
  7. Information concerning a user that the web site or online service collects online, from the user, and maintains in personally identifiable form, in combination with an identifier described within this privacy policy.

Under California Law SB 27, California residents have the right to receive, once a year, information about third parties with whom we have shared information about you or your family for their marketing purposes during the previous calendar year, and a description of the categories of personal information shared. To make such a request, please send an email to contact@foliprime-product.com and please include the phrase “California Privacy Request” in the subject line, the domain name of the web site you are inquiring about, along with your name, address and email address. We will respond to you within thirty days of receiving such a request.

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Public Forums

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Our Company’s Commitment to Data Security

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In the Event of Sale or Bankruptcy

The ownership of The FoliPrime, Inc. may change at some point in the future. Should that occur, we want this site to be able to maintain a relationship with you. In the event of a sale, merger, public offering, bankruptcy, or other change in control of The FoliPrime, Inc. your information may be shared with the person or business that owns or controls this site. Opting out of receiving information from third parties will not affect our right to transfer your information to a new owner, but your choices will continue to be respected regarding fthe use of your information.

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If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or the practices described herein, you may contact us through the contact information provided on this web site.

Types Of Information We Collect

The following provides examples of the type of information that we collect from you and how we use that information.

Context
Types of Data
Primary Purpose for Collection and Use of Data
Account Registration
We collect your name and contact information when you create an account. We also collect information relating to the actions that you perform while logged into your account.
We use this information to provide account related functionalities to our users. Accounts can be used for easy checkout and to save your preferences and transaction history.
Client Information
We collect the name, and contact information, of our clients, affiliates, and their employees with whom we may interact.
We have an interest in contacting our clients and communicating with them concerning normal business administration such as projects, services, and billing.
Cookies and First Party Tracking
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We use this information to ensure our website operates efficiently.
Cookies and Third Party Tracking
We participate in behavior-based advertising, this means that a third party uses technology (e.g., a cookie) to collect information about your use of our website so that they can provide advertising about products and services tailored to your interests on our website, or on other websites. See our Cookie Section below for more information.
Where required by law, we base the use of third party cookies upon consent.
Demographic Information
We may collect personal information, such as your age, location, and gender.
We use this information to comply with applicable laws.
Email Interconnectivity
If you receive email from us, we use certain tools to capture data related to when you open our message, click on any links or banners it contains and make purchases.
We use this information to understand how you interact with our communications to you.
Employment
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We use information about current employees to carry out our payment and benefits obligations. In some contexts, we are also required by law to collect information about our employees. We also use this information to have efficient staffing and work force operations.
Feedback/Support
If you provide us feedback or contact us for support we will collect your name and e-mail address, as well as any other content that you send to us, in order to reply.
We use this information in order to receive, and act upon, your feedback or issues.
Mailing List
When you sign up for one of our mailing lists we collect your email address or postal address.
We share information about our products and services with individuals that consent to receive such information. We also use this information to share information about our products or services.
Mobile Devices
We collect information from your mobile device such as unique identifying information broadcast from your device when visiting our website or when visiting one of our stores.
We use this information to identify unique visitors and understand how users interact with us on their mobile devices.
Order Placement
We collect your name, billing address, shipping address, e-mail address, phone number, and credit card number when you place an order.
We use your information to perform our contract to provide you with products or services.
Partner Promotion
We collect information that you provide as part of a co-branded promotion with another company.
We use this information to fulfil our promotions.
Surveys
When you participate in a survey we collect information that you provide through the survey. If the survey is provided by a third party service provider, the third party’s privacy policy applies to the collection, use, and disclosure of your information.
We use this information to understand your opinions and collect information relevant to our organization.
Sweepstakes or Contests
When you participate in a sweepstakes or contest we collect information about you which includes contact information to notify you if you are selected.
We use this information to operate the sweepstakes. In some contexts we are also required by law to collect information about those that enter into our sweepstakes.
Website Interactions
We use technology to monitor how you interact with our website. This may include which links you click on, or information that you type into our online forms. This may also include information about your device or browser.
We use this information to understand how you interact with our website to better improve it, and to understand your preferences and interests in order to select offerings that you might find most useful. We also have a legitimate interest in detecting and preventing fraud.
Web Logs
We collect information, including your browser type, operating system, Internet Protocol (IP) address (a number that is automatically assigned to a computer when the Internet is used), domain name, click-activity, referring website, and/or a date/time stamp for visitors.
We use this information to monitor our networks and the visitors to our websites. Among other things, it helps us understand which of our products or services is the most popular.

Revisions to This Policy

Our company reserves the right to revise, amend, or modify this policy, our Terms of Use and Service, and our other policies and agreements at any time and in any manner, by updating this posting. Your use of this site after such changes are implemented constitutes your acknowledgement and acceptance of there changes. Please consult this privacy statement prior to every use for any changes.

The owner of this website may receive compensation for recommendations made in reference ot the proucts or services on this website. This compensation may be in the form of money, services, or complimentary products and could exist without any action from a website visitor. Should you purchase a product or service that was recommnded by this website, it is understood that some form of compensation might be made to the website owner. For example, if you click on an affiliate link at this websaite and then make a purchase of the recommended product or service, the website owner may receive compensation.

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PaperlessTimes is really just a hobby site comprised of some of my favorite and most read conservative leaning sources.  The main idea is just aggregate RSS feeds centralized in one area so I can simply take a quick look at the latest articles and pop on over to the full article if wanted; saves a bit of time from going from site to site looking for something that might interest me.

I long ago lost any faith in what is commonly known as mainstream “news” recognizing that it’s not just how a story is framed, but also what is omitted in what passes for information these days.  There are many, many great authors and thinkers in conservative thought who have the freedom to focus not on narrative and instead on substance.

This is always a work in progress for my own use, but if you find it useful, that is awesome.  If there’s a feed you read that you would possibly like added, (always interested in expanding), have any complaints or suggestions, feel free to use the contact form .  There is a bit of marketing on this site which is more of a test run for developing stuff.  If anything catches your eye, buy away, for it does go to me.

thanks, Steve

 

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