Connecticut hospital charges vary widely

New data from CMS shows that prices charged by Connecticut hospitals for the same procedure vary widely, by as much as three fold. An analysis by C-HIT found that Yale-New Haven Hospital charges $85,902 for a cardiac pacemaker while Manchester Memorial charges $22,493 for the same procedure. Stamford Hospital, featured in a recent Time magazine article on extreme health care pricing, charges $25,493 to treat pneumonia while Charlotte Hungerford charges only $8,177. The data gives hospital charges, and the lower prices Medicare pays, for 100 common procedures. Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance plans pay less than charges. However uninsured patients are usually billed the higher charge price.