It’s common to see MRF data that seems compliant with the law but can’t be used in any analysis. Handl typically flags between 20% and 30% of all the price transparency rates we ingest as outliers. Even across some of the largest insurance carriers, Handl typically rejects around 20-25% of the data it receives. Read more.

Location, location, location: What’s true in real estate is also true in healthcare. Venue is incredibly important when considering how to drive down healthcare costs. 

Let’s illustrate that with a look at a knee joint replacement, CPT 27447.

Across four providers in the San Francisco area, Aetna POS returned negotiated rates between $22,185 at UCSF Medical Center to $34,653 at the CPMC Van Ness campus, a price spread of more than $12,000.

That wide pricing disparity is not limited to one payer. Other national payers return differences between the smallest and largest increases of $4,000 to nearly $15,000.

At Handl, digging into the data is how we’re uncovering the true cost of healthcare to help create more equitable, accessible and high-value care.  

The Handl Health customer success team is on the front lines every single day, listening to how customers use our price transparency analysis products. They’re also paying close attention to the needs of healthcare brokers and other customers, working together to navigate the shifting industry. Learn more

“One of the hardest things with these types of plans is the fear of the unknown,” Ahmed Marmoush told Healthcare Brew. Read more

From a podcast with BenefitsAlly, here’s an overview of everything Handl does in 3 minutes, using 3 slides.

“I don't think every group is ready to do that.”

If you’ve listened to the podcast of Self-Funded with Spencer lately, you no doubt heard USI Insurance Service’s Matt Miron utter that phrase in response to some big ideas about how to remove waste and streamline the healthcare market. Mark Cuban had just finished talking about putting a Healthcare CFO in the C-suite of major companies and getting more involved with direct contracting. Miron’s response to these (and other) ideas advocated for a cautious approach to sea-change shifts.

Employers first need to realize what is at stake and how to fix it:

“Let's be a smarter consumer of the system instead of writing a blank check because that's really what's been going on.”

Most of my time at Handl is spent talking to and educating benefits consultants. Client’s needs are all moving in the same direction: they don’t trust the pricing data, and they don’t trust the discounts the carriers keep providing. They’re looking for something new, something to shift the status quo, but many of them either don’t know what’s possible or are wary of changing a system that “works” for them. The problem? The system really doesn’t work for anyone. (To this point, Cuban offered some jaw dropping numbers; there’s a lot of health plan money to be saved, that’s for sure.)

But before heading down the long and complicated journey of direct contracting or anything more drastic in a quest to save as much money as possible, it makes sense to learn about all the options. There’s so much more visibility – and healthcare savings – employers can tap into if the benefits consultants they work with benefit from the right data-fueled insights. Let me know what you thought of the episode.

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This month, the team is planning trips to the South, taking in both the HCAA TPA Summit and RosettaFest in Nashville. Let us know if you’ll be at either event and want to connect.

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