What You Should Know:
– The latest U.S. Health Care Price Index (USHPI), the first national resource to publicly document the price of cash-pay medical care in America, reveals that national average prices for everyday healthcare services decreased in August and September, in the face of record inflation.
– The USHPI features pricing data for routine medical services in all 50 states – from primary care and mental health to women’s health and more – with additional prices and specialties to be added over time. In addition to regional and state comparisons, the USHPI tracks price variance and market trends on a monthly basis.
USHPI Background
The data comes from Sesame, one of the largest cash-pay healthcare marketplaces in the United States. It covers the thousands of healthcare providers resident in the marketplace that charge cash prices for their services. Sesame analyzed thousands of primary care and specialty care appointments made on its platform, leveraging pricing data for patient appointments that occurred during August and September 2022.
The USHPI features pricing data for routine medical services in all 50 states – from primary care and mental health to women’s health and more – with additional prices and specialties to be added over time. In addition to regional and state comparisons, the USHPI tracks price variance and market trends on a monthly basis.
Key findings from the USHPI include:
– Nationally, the price for a primary care telehealth visit decreased by 6.1% from July to September, and COVID screening appointment prices fell by 5.8% over the same period. On average, Americans also paid less for prescription refill and skin consult appointments, seeing prices lower by 4.1% and 5.3% respectively. For example, a skin consult cost $47.60 on average in July and $45.10 in September.
– In September, the average cash price of a primary care appointment in the United States, with a doctor or nurse practitioner, was $41.70. New Mexico was the most affordable state in which to book a visit (at $36.90), and Louisiana was the most expensive at $58.50. Regionally, western and southern states paid below average for primary care appointments, whereas patients in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and Midwest saw higher than average prices.
– Americans who paid cash for a prescription refill appointment paid an average of $42 in August and September.
– COVID screenings in August averaged $42.36 nationally, falling to $42.10 in September. Most affordable COVID appointments in September were found in Arizona and Florida at $36 and $38 respectively; states paying the highest were Maine ($55) and Oklahoma ($50).
