Scenario:On behalf of consumers, employers and local purchasers in your market are committed to slowing health care costs by improving visibility on hospital prices. A recent media story revealed that prices in your local market were the highest in the state. You are a member of a private sector consulting service that has been hired to help a hospital address transparency issues. The hospital would like to be more transparent in their cost and fee relationships with providers.

Analyze advantages of transparency for both the hospital and the consumer. Include how hospital cost transparency might improve economic efficiency. Then, recommend regulation and policy to compare hospitals based on their costs. Defend your recommendations.