Health Care Billing System Driving Costs Up

The stealth battle between hospitals and insurers over bills for each hospitalization, office visit, test, piece of equipment and procedure is costly for us all. 25 percent of U.S. hospital spending is related to administrative costs, according to a study by the Commonwealth Fund. That compares with 16 percent in England and 12 percent in Canada. That discrepancy comes, in part, from the prolonged negotiations over payment and the huge number of coders, billers and collectors who have to be compensated. This NYTimes report (click here) examines how our complex billing system adds significant costs to American health care.