The Report Card on State Price Transparency Laws gave 43 states failing grades, according to HealthLeaders Media.
Newton, Conn.-based Health Care Incentives Improvement Institute and Berkeley, Calif.-based Catalyst for Payment Reform developed the report card.
Here are six things to know:
1. The test analyzes the effectiveness of state regulations related to "price data, the participation level of hospitals and physician practices, whether patient prices are listed on an out-of-pocket basis rather than a price-charged basis, the scope of the services that have pricing information and whether the pricing information is readily available online," according to HealthLeaders Media.
2. In 2015, New Hampshire represented the only state to receive an "A" grade.
3. In 2016, New Hampshire, Colorado and Maine received "A" grades.
4. Although many states have price transparency laws in place, most don't offer consumers any assistance in utilizing price transparency tools.
5. The majority of states received failing grades due to their poor design and implementation of price transparency laws.
6. The report card suggests states focus on these areas to boost price transparency laws:
• Data sources
• Meaningful price information
• Scope of procedures
• Accessible websites