Outofpocket.com - Expose Costs of Health Care

Outofpocket.com was started by consumer advocates to help give you the true price of health care services. The health care industry remains one of the least transparent consumer industries, and consumers are often stuck with unreasonable and surprising out-of-pocket expenses, even when they are covered. Hence the birth of this site. Using the template of a social networking site and a basic directory, it is easy to search for the cost of certain procedures (I did a search for mammograms in CA and immediately got a listing of prices in different zip codes). It is also just as easy to input your own experience and the cost of services to the directory. This information can empower the consumer to fight unreasonable charges, or better yet, to ask the doctor and/or or health care provider the costs BEFORE visiting a doctor or a facility. While the site is still new and needs more users, its purpose and service is invaluable.

"We are a team of accomplished professionals with extensive experience in Information Technology, ranging from client-server to enterprise systems, from IT management consulting to packaged software development, and from dot-com startups to Fortune 50 companies. For the past ten years we have developed custom health care solutions for hospitals, clinics, physicians, labs and software vendors. Our team's track record includes numerous business successes and industry awards.

As consumers of health care, we have a lot of experience with consumer directed health care choices, and are well aware of the problems that exist in our current health care system. Health care costs are out of control. Did you know that health care is the only industry that sells services to consumers without openly disclosing prices? Consumers today are required to make more decisions about their own health care and as a result, transparency has become an important issue. Consumers are demanding more choices, better service and disclosure of prices.

We recognize the need for change, and we have a passion to make a difference in the health care industry. In order to drive this change, we have launched OutOfPocket.com to help consumers look-up and compare out-of-pocket health care costs for common medical services. OutofPocket.com is a directory of true prices for health care services, and allows you, the cost-conscious consumer, to compare costs so you can effectively manage your health care dollars. The contents of the directory are contributed by consumers to share with other consumers and everyone is invited to participate -- including the uninsured, and the insured.

Our vision is to take the secrecy out of health care pricing. We strongly believe that you should have easy access to meaningful health care prices, including out of pocket costs for common procedures -- before you enter a doctor's office. OutOfPocket.com is a collaborative effort by consumer champions like you. Price transparency is a powerful force that will help transform the health care industry and you have the power to influence this change. By exposing health care prices, consumers collectively may ultimately change what providers charge - and how much consumers pay.

Health care prices continue to rise each year. Americans are spending $1.9 trillion per year on health care, and by 2015 health care spending is expected to reach $3.5 trillion. Consumers are paying more of their own health care costs in the form of higher premiums, deductibles, co-pays, and out-of-pocket expenses for health care services. Many employers, in an effort to keep costs down, are offering their employees a higher-deductible and lower premium health insurance plan. OutOfPocket.com helps you make informed decisions about your health care spending by providing you with a directory to compare true prices for common health care services before you visit a doctor or facility."

It is rare when a new site truly serves the public good, but this is one that does.
Using the power of the internet to empower consumers, hopefully this is the beginning of many tools to address the debacle called the US health care system. They also had a super impressive list of links to other consumer health care advocates and resources.

Great site with a great mission, but how are consumers going to find them? What is their marketing plan? Their web traffic may be low because they are new, but do hopefully they have strong links and relationships with other established health care links.