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New federal law requires hospitals to post prices for services online

Treating a headache without major complications at Orange Park costs $82,966.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services established new transparency rules last April requiring hospitals to post their prices online. Tuesday was the first day those rules took effect.

Figuring out how much a trip to the hospital costs can be tricky.

But accessing pricing information at three of the First Coast’s largest health care providers just got a little more transparent.

First Coast News looked at the cost for services at three hospitals on the First Coast, UF Health, Baptist Health and the Orange Park Medical Center.

The spreadsheets contain a lot of information but aren’t necessarily easy to read.

We wanted to know how much an ordinary ibuprofen cost.

A single 200 mg pill cost anywhere from $8.00, to 10 cents to $3.00.

That large price range isn’t unusual.

Treating a headache without major complications at Orange Park costs $82,966.

At UF Health it costs $17,903, and at Baptist Health it costs $28,498.

What about a hip and knee replacement?

OPMC has the most expensive procedure at $145,367. UF Health charges $74,580 and Baptist Health charges $60,949.

These costs do not factor in what your insurance will cover. 

And some sites make a point of saying the cost is the total cost of a procedure, not necessarily what a patient pays.

While this menu of services can help calculate health care costs, you should talk with your doctor and insurer to know exactly how much your hospital stay would cost.

Baptist Health added in a statement that they support transparency. Orange Park Medical Center said that they’ve had online price estimates since 2007, but they’ve adjusted their tools to comply with this new federal law.

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