CASPER – Hospitals in Wyoming charged private insurance plans more than three times what Medicare would pay for the same care in 2017, according to a national study that looked at 14 hospitals here and nearly 1,600 facilities statewide and found further evidence that the Eq-uality State has a serious problem with health-care prices.
“What this helps us understand is that yes, in fact Wyoming hospitals are charging significantly more above Medicare than hospitals in other states, even highly rural states,” said Anne Ladd, who runs the Wyoming Business Coalition on Health, an employer group organized to improve health-care quality and pricing.
The report examined data from 25 states – including a number of rural states like Montana, Kansas, New Mexico and Washington – and compared what private health-care plans paid hospitals versus what Medicare paid. Nationwide, the report’s authors found private insurance paid 241% what Medicare paid.