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The federal government is moving forward with a spate of proposals that will force hospitals to be better about publishing the prices they charge health insurers and patients.

Federal law has required hospitals to post their prices since 2021. Compliance has been dismal, although it has improved since the government increased fines a few years ago. But the pricing information is still tough to find and confusing to interpret.

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The latest regulations, which take effect next year, attempt to streamline reporting. Hospitals already have to publish a machine-readable file listing their prices, but next year, they will have to use a standard template, created by the government, so the information is more uniform and understandable.

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