How much would you pay? Everett Clinic among first to post all prices online

You wouldn’t buy a car without knowing the actual price, so why should you have surgery or receive other medical care without a clue about how much it’ll cost?

Snohomish County’s Everett Clinic is aiming to change that, becoming the first large health care system in the state and among the first nationwide to list all of its prices online and at its clinics.

On Saturday, the physicians group of 500 providers at nine locations throughout the county posted prices for all of its most common services. It’s the completion of an effort that began in May when it first listed prices for imaging services and began adding others throughout the year.

“Health care costs are too high and patients can’t make wise decisions without transparency of prices,” says Rick Cooper, Everett Clinic CEO.

Knowing the prices will allow patients to work with their healthcare provider to determine their best medical options, says Cooper.

“Medical services costs can vary greatly among providers in the same geographic region. In many situations, the quality of care and outcomes are unrelated to costs, meaning patients may be paying more but not necessarily receiving better care,” he says.

Along with working to improve transparency, the Everett Clinic is also leading the effort to provide easily accessed information about quality, much like Yelp.

“It makes perfect sense in health care and for far too long there hasn’t been that transparency,” he says.

The price list only applies to services for those not covered by insurance paid directly by patients. Pricing for insurance carriers is negotiated separately between the Everett Clinic and insurance companies. Those prices are provided by individual carriers and can vary widely depending on level of coverage.

“Our hope is that others in health care will join us in our commitment to transparency,” says Cooper.