ATLANTA — Right now, you can search for what a medical procedure you need is likely to cost.
Channel 2’s Linda Stouffer spoke to experts and officials working on the new tool about how this big change will help Georgia residents.
The new app, the Georgia All Payer Claims Database cost comparison tool was developed by the State of Georgia and The Georgia Tech Research Institute.
According to Dr. Jon Duke, the Director of the Center for Health Analytics at Georgia Tech, the tool will let Georgians get price comparisons on various procedures instantly.
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It’s already a feature many stores offer, with price comparison available on everything from a cup of coffee to a new car or a television.
Now, you can compare prices for chest x-rays, Cesarean sections and more, thanks to the GAPCD tool.
The prices you’ll see for comparison are based on the type of insurance you have, letting you unlock the medical costs before you get billed.
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“It gives consumers, patients, all of us access to data that wasn’t even remotely possible even just a few years ago,” Duke told Channel 2 Action News.
Duke said the state and research institute developed a way to search for what you need, near you, while showing how much it’ll cost.
“You can put in your own zip code so you can have it based where you are,” Duke said. “You can say how far out from where you live to the facility.”
The application will let patients choose if they are covered by commercial insurance, Medicare or Medicaid, then check the prices for different procedures.
“You could look at radiology, cardiology, surgical procedures,” like a Cesarean delivery without major complications, Duke said. “You can see what the statewide median is of about $12,000 and then you can see the ranges at different hospitals in town.”
Looking at the costs, we get $5,497 at Southern Regional Medical Center for a Cesarean delivery, or $18,000 at Wellstar Kennestone.
Each green bar on the application, while checking prices, represents the price range, which could be because of negotiated insurance differences.
Through the online tool, you can check costs for a brain MRI procedure, which ranges from $600 to $2,000, with your costs depending on your co-pay.
Duke suggested clicking in to the actual stats to learn more.
“You might be interested, for example, if there’s say a hip replacement,” Duke said. “You really get a sense of how many of these procedures are done, in different areas.”
Duke also told Stouffer this is a great resource because “the last thing you want is for your patients to be surprised.”
Only your individual insurance can tell you what your actual costs could be, it depends on your co-pay, your deductible and other factors, but this new tool gives consumers real data to consider when making treatment decisions.
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