How Much Will My Child’s ACL Reconstruction Cost? Availability and Variability of Price Estimates for Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction in the United States

Conclusion: Price estimates for pediatric sports medicine procedures can be challenging to obtain, even for the educated consumer. Top-ranked hospitals and hospitals in the Northeast region may charge more than their counterparts. In all areas, self-pay discounts can be substantial if they can be identified but they potentially create an information disadvantage for unaware patients needing to pay out-of-pocket. Study Design: Economic; Level of Evidence II What is Known about the Subject: Previous studies have highlighted the importance of value-based health care decisions and deficits of price transparency in various fields including pediatric and orthopaedics procedures. What this Study Adds to Existing Knowledge: This study is the first to examine availability and variability of health care cost in pediatric sports medicine and the first to assess availability and magnitude of self-pay discounts, setting expectations for the uninsured patient incurring large out-of-pocket expenses.
Source: Journal of Pediatric Orthopaedics - Category: Orthopaedics Tags: Sports Medicine Source Type: research