Expensive hospitals drop prices to compete for patients

When the California Public Employees' Retirement System capped the price of knee and hip replacements about 40 higher-priced hospitals in the state cut their surgery prices significantly to avoid losing patients, the Los Angeles Times reported. The more-expensive hospitals charged an average of $27,149 last year for the surgical procedures, down 37 percent from $43,308 in 2010. With CalPERS members shopping around for cheaper prices, the price change brought higher-priced hospitals more in line with the average $24,528 price tag of their less-expensive competitors. Article