Hospital Price Transparency

 

As of 01/01/2021 the CMS’s Hospital Price Transparency Rule went into effect to help Americans know the cost of a hospital item or service before receiving it.  Each hospital operating in the US will be required to provide clear, accessible pricing information online about the items and services they provide in two ways:

1.       As a comprehensive machine-readable file with all items and services (Chargemaster)

2.       In a display of 300 shoppable services in a consumer-friendly format (Cost Estimator Tool)

This information is to make it easier for consumers to shop and compare prices across hospitals and estimate the cost of care before going to the hospital.

 

Click here for more information on the Hospital Price Transparency Final Rule.

Click on the Hospital's name below to go to their respective price transparency page and follow the directions we have outlined.

 

DISCLAIMER:

J.S. Edwards and Sherlock Insurance (JSE) are providing the following links as a benefit to our members.  These tools are intended to provide members the resources to become better stewards of their healthcare dollars by becoming more informed and educated healthcare consumers. 

The cost estimates are intended for informational purposes only and should not be used solely when making health care decisions; but to provide a factual starting point for a more informed discussion among members, their families, and their care providers. 

JSE makes no guarantee that the price estimates will be reflective to actual charges or actual services rendered.  JSE encourages everyone to read all disclaimers on the respective hospital websites to understand the limitations. Estimate Information is based on hospitals’ own data; however, estimates may not include all professional fees or additional tests required for your care.
If your final bill appears inflated from the price estimate, we encourage you to see our page What to do in the event of a claim

BEAUMONT AREA:

1. Christus St. Elizabeth:

Cost estimator Tool:

·       Instructions:

o   Click on “Price Estimator”

o   Read disclosure and click "I Agree" if you accept the terms of use

o   Choose your hospital from the dropdown.  For SETX area, select “Southeast Texas St. Elizabeth”

o   Click Next and proceed through the following steps, selecting your carrier (if applicable), completing any personal information, and procedures to be performed

Charge Master:

·       To obtain the charge master, you can scroll to the very bottom under Cost Estimates, and select “Christus Southeast Texas St. Elizabeth” under the “Cost of Services Texas” dropdown

However, the file appears to be in an unreadable format.

 Financial Assistance page

 

2. Baptist Hospitals of Southeast Texas:

Cost estimator Tool:

·       Instructions:

o   Click on “Calculate Your Out-of-Pocket Cost”

o   Select the two radio boxes and scroll down and click “I Understand and Agree” if you agree to terms and conditions

o   You can then navigate to find your specific service/procedure

o   The initial price it provides is based on no insurance.  You can select “Select Insurance” at the bottom to find out your out-of-pocket costs after insurance is applied

Charge Master:

·       To obtain the charge master, on the prior page where it asks to check the 2 radio boxes, there are links to download their chargemasters.  2 links appear to not work, but the others do

Financial Assistance page

3. Medical Center of SETX:

Cost estimator Tool:

·         Instructions:

o   Click on “Create Estimate”

o   Read disclosure and click "I Agree" if you accept the terms of use

o   Follow prompts

Charge Master:

·         To obtain the charge master, click “Download Now” under Download Standard Charges List from the link above.

HOUSTON AREA:
1. Houston Methodist:

Cost estimator Tool:

·         Instructions:

o   Click on the “Estimate Your Cost of Care” tool on the right hand side under “In This Section”

o   Follow the prompts

Charge Master:

·         To obtain the charge master, click on either “Charge Description Master” or “Diagnostic Related Groups (DRG)”. 

·         For either option selected, scroll down to the bottom to find the downloadable file for different hospital locations.

Financial Assistance page

2. MD Anderson:

Cost estimator Tool:

·         Instructions:

o   Scroll down to section Creating estimates in MyChart

o   Click on one of the two links provided in that section, whichever is more applicable to you.

o   Follow the prompts

Charge Master

·         To obtain the charge master, scroll down to the section “Charge Lists” on the link provided above.

·         Click on the medical division (Hospital, Professional, Supplies, or Pharmacy) that corresponds with your inquiry to initiate download of the file.

Financial Assistance page

3. Memorial Hermann:

Cost estimator Tool:

·         Instructions:

o   Read disclosure and click "I Understand" if you accept the terms of use

o   From the “I Understand” dropdown, Select the blue "Price Estimate Tool" 

o   Follow the prompts

Charge Master:

·         To obtain the charge master, click on the CSV downloadable files in the “I Understand” dropdown.

·         Select the downloadable file for different hospital locations/segments

Financial Assistance page

 

4. St. Joseph’s:

Cost estimator Tool:

·         Instructions:

o   Scroll down and click on “Create Estimate”

o   Follow the prompts

Charge Master:

·         To obtain the charge master, click “Download Now” to download the file.

Financial Assistance page

 

5. St. Luke’s:

Cost estimator Tool:

·         Instructions:

o   Under “Estimate your Health Care Costs”, click on the specific hospital location you are seeking an estimate

o   Follow the prompts

Charge Master:

·         To obtain the charge master, click on the blue “download” associated with the specific location you are interested in.

Financial Assistance page

 

6. Texas Children’s Hospital:

Cost estimator Tool:

·         Instructions:

o   Scroll down and click on “Create Estimate”

o   Follow the prompts

 Charge Master:

·         To obtain the charge master, click “Download Now” to download the file.

 Financial Assistance page

 

7. UTMB:

Cost estimator Tool:

·         Instructions:

o   Scroll down to “Request an Estimate” on the right hand side

o   Click the red “Use the Mychart Patient Estimate Tool”

o   Follow the prompts

Charge Master

·         To obtain the charge master, scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on “2021 UTMB CHARGEMASTER”.

Financial Assistance page:

·         Instructions:

o   Scroll down to “Charity Care and Financial Assistance Policy” to find information on financial assistance

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