Hochul abandons plans for health care cost comparison website

A long-delayed effort by the state to create a one-stop shop where New Yorkers could proactively compare the cost and quality of health care procedures is being scrapped by Gov. Kathy Hochul.

The idea was proposed by then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo as part of his 2020 priorities, pitching a “consumer-friendly website” that appears to have never gotten beyond a landing page promising resources that would include financial assistance information and what to do about a surprise bill.

“This new website will give New Yorkers the facts they need to make informed decisions about the cost and quality of healthcare procedures – helping increase competition in the marketplace and driving down prices,” Cuomo said in a statement at the end of 2019.

Asked about the status of the website in May of 2020, a spokesperson for the state Department of Health said the website was under development and that the “state remains committed to ensuring healthcare pricing transparency.” This summer, a different spokesperson with the department described the website as “an initiative of the previous administration, and one that we are not currently pursuing.”

As envisioned by Cuomo, the state website was supposed to enable consumers to search by medical procedure costs, address affordability questions, and access specific data about hospital performances. In recent years, federal rules and regulations have promoted greater price disclosures by health care facilities, but they are not centrally located and can be difficult for consumers to utilize in a meaningful way.

The state Department of Health maintains a website that helps consumers estimate their premium and out-of-pocket costs for medical insurance and care. State collected health data is also promoted on the “NYS Health Connector” website, but the information is largely only decipherable by researchers and health care stakeholders.