Such discrepancies arise from a fundamental fact about the American health care system: The government does not regulate health care prices. Because health prices in the United States are so opaque, some researchers have turned to their own medical bills to understand this type of price variation. Two health researchers who gave birth at the same hospital with the same insurance compared notes afterward. They found that one received a surprise $1,600 bill while the other one didn’t. Ms. Parast, who received the surprise bill, ultimately got it reversed but not until her baby was nearly a year old.

Source: New York Times June 29, 2020 14:30 UTC