The researchers evaluated the impact of a physician-targeted price transparency program on physicians’ test ordering rates, care quality, and use of price information in clinical decision-making and conversations with patients. The researchers conducted a randomized controlled trial at a large multispecialty group practice in which physicians received alternate versions of the same price information at the time of test ordering. This information was delivered via the practice’s electronic health record and was not be available to physicians in the control arm. Following the intervention, the researchers conducted semi-structured interviews with randomly-selected physicians from each study arm. The goal of this project was to inform future health policy efforts aimed at engaging physicians to act as stewards of health care resources.
This project was funded as part of the Foundation’s solicitation “Understanding the Use and Impact of Price Data in Health Care,” which supports empirical research studies that contribute to the knowledge base in this area, with the goal of providing reliable and generalizable evidence to inform policymakers and delivery system participants and to help accelerate progress toward using price information effectively.