Seven Connecticut hospitals, including four acute care facilities, are among more than 500 nationwide that received warnings from the Trump administration claiming they lack the pricing transparency required by federal law, according to a published report.
Seven Connecticut hospitals, including four acute care facilities, are among more than 500 nationwide that received warnings from the Trump administration claiming they lack the pricing transparency required by federal law, according to a published report.
The Associated Press on Tuesday published a list it said it exclusively obtained of 519 hospitals that since April “have either received letters of warning or, in more severe cases, requests to submit plans to provide transparent pricing.”
A federal rule requires hospitals to publicly post pricing information online.
The hospitals in Connecticut on the noncompliance list include acute-care facilities Day Kimball Hospital in Putnam, Manchester Memorial Hospital, Rockville General Hospital in Vernon and Waterbury Hospital.
In January,
Manchester and Rockville General were acquired by Hartford HealthCare, while
Waterbury Hospital was acquired in March by UConn Health. All three formerly were owned by Prospect Medical Holdings.
Day Kimball Hospital is also
on track to be acquired by UConn Health later this year.
The other hospitals listed as receiving warnings are Connecticut Behavioral Health Hospital in West Hartford, Gaylord Hospital in Wallingford and The Connecticut Hospice Inc. in Branford.
The federal Hospital Price Transparency Rule, issued by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in 2019 and effective since Jan. 1, 2021, requires most U.S. hospitals to publicly disclose pricing information online.
According to CMS, hospitals must either post a comprehensive machine-readable file containing prices for all items and services or provide consumer-friendly pricing information for commonly shopped healthcare services.
According to the CMS website, hospitals not in compliance with the rule are required to correct any issues within 90 days. If that deadline is not met, CMS issues a corrective action plan (CAP) request that requires facilities to provide a CAP within 45 days.
Hospitals that don’t comply with the warnings face penalties as high as $2 million annually, AP reported.
Hartford Business Journal sent emails or left phone messages seeking comment from all of the Connecticut hospitals on the list.
A spokesperson for UConn Health Waterbury Hospital said via email that the hospital does have a current price transparency file available to the public on its
website.
“The hospital will work with the necessary administration departments to clarify any confusion,” the spokesperson added.
A Hartford HealthCare spokesperson said via email that the health system supports increased transparency and makes the information "as easy as possible to find, with a
link on our home page to machine-readable files containing millions of pieces of pricing data, as well as a price estimator tool, as required by the federal price transparency regulations." The spokesperson added that HHC encourages patients to use that tool and to review its list of frequently asked questions "so they are better prepared and educated for their out-of-pocket costs."
In its emailed statement, The Connecticut Hospice Inc. said it received a CAP-demand letter in January, submitted a CAP to CMS in February, and “received a letter from CMS stating we are in full compliance” in April.
A spokesperson for Gaylord Specialty Healthcare, which operates Gaylord Hospital, said the organization is committed to transparency and to complying with federal rules.
The spokesperson said the CMS review “involved technical website requirements and not the availability of pricing information to patients or consumers,” and added that pricing information was publicly available during the review period.
The Gaylord spokesperson added that once the hospital was notified of the “technical requirements, including recently implemented federal updates,” it promptly made the necessary changes and “CMS subsequently completed its review.”
Day Kimball Hospital also responded via email, with a spokesperson saying the hospital is aware that the format of its price transparency file on the hospital’s website “does not currently meet all of the federal requirements.”
The statement added that the hospital has “consistently maintained pricing information on our website and are actively working to update the file format to ensure it complies with federal requirements.”
The other hospitals on the list did not immediately respond to the request for comment.
In an emailed statement, the Connecticut Hospital Association said it is important for patients to have access to pricing information.
“Connecticut hospitals are fulfilling that need, not only in broad compliance with federal price transparency rules but also in the vast amount of financial information hospitals report to the state each year,” the CHA said, adding that transparency “is an important ingredient in good patient care.”
The 519 hospitals on the non-compliance list are located in 49 states and the District of Columbia. Texas had the most hospitals listed with 42, while Alaska was the only state with none.
In New England, Massachusetts had 12, Maine had three, Rhode Island had two, and New Hampshire and Vermont each had one.
