Consumers aren't using healthcare cost comparison tools as much as industry experts anticipated, according to The Bulletin.
Consumers' perceived correlation between price and quality may explain, in part, why cost transparency tools have been slow to take off. For instance, it is difficult for consumers to determine if a dermatologist that charges twice as much as another is better at diagnosing skin cancer. "It's hard to make heads or tails out of all the quality information out there," Suzanne Delbanco, executive director of Catalyst for Payment Reform, told The Bulletin.
Patients may not shop around for a variety of other reasons, as well. They may have an urgent and unexpected need for medical care, and therefore lack the time or ability to compare costs online. Patient's deductibles are also steadily increasing (the deductible for an individual increased 255 percent between 2006 and 2015, according to PwC) and the ability to shave a couple dollars off here and there may not make a great difference.
Rather than using cost comparison tools to shop healthcare prices, consumers may be using the tools to verify the quality of physicians and specialists they already wanted to use, according to the article. Many transparency tools, like Castlight, aggregate quality metrics and employee satisfaction levels to validate or guide decisions.