As the health care landscape becomes ever more complex for employers and individuals, a clear way to estimate the cost of a health care-related service is going to become increasingly important, said Chasity Chace, CFO of Wilmington Health, on Wednesday. 
 
Chace, speaking at a health care seminar at Wednesday’s WilmingtonBiz Expo, said that consumers and employers now have the capability to see what different providers charge, thanks to a new online comparison tool from Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina.
 
Using the example of clearly-posted prices at gas stations, whose prices-per-gallon rarely deviate more than a few cents from competitors’, Chace asked why health care consumers have to choose their providers in an opaque environment, especially since costs for the same treatment can vary by thousands of dollars from one provider to another.
 
She then demonstrated the use of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Health Care Cost Estimator for her audience, pointing out that while Wilmington Health was the lowest-cost provider for some services, it was the highest in the area for some others.
 
“We’re working to reduce our costs in these areas,” she said. 
 
Recognizing that patients need measures of quality as well as cost, Chace explained, Wilmington Health recently developed metrics that chart its physicians’ effectiveness and efficiency for each service.
 
“We must keep our quality up” even while striving to keep costs down, Chace said. “We data mine our electronic health records for measures of quality.”
 
Each quarter, the health care organization publishes its metrics internally, so each physician can see how he or she compares to colleagues. Chace said that Wilmington Health is already seeing results: efficiency is improving and costs are headed downward.
 
She said she hopes the ability of health care consumers to compare costs for specific treatments and services in their part of the state will encourage higher-priced providers to find ways of reducing their costs so they can charge less.
 
And when Wilmington Health is the low-price option for a specific treatment? We’lre fairly certain competitors will lower their prices,” she said.
 
Chace also discussed the need, as health care prices continue to rise – albeit at a slower rate than in the past – for employers to redesign their health care plans to save money and promote better choices among insured employees. She also cited Brunswick County’s recent decision to drop spousal coverage from its health care insurance as another tactic employers are likely to use to reduce costs.