Sage Transparency, a free web-based tool offers employers, policymakers, researchers, and the general public a clear, unbiased view of hospital price, cost, and quality data, as well as price data for ambulatory surgery centers and physician-administered medications.
Employer Price Transparency Project
The Employers’ Forum of Indiana commissioned RAND Corporation in 2016 to conduct the first publicly-available employer price transparency study in the United States that compares what employers pay as a percent of what Medicare pays for the same services. This Employer Price Transparency Project has resulted in a series of Employer Price Transparency Studies published in 2017, 2019, 2020, and 2022. Millions of employers’ hospital and ASC insurance claims data, which note the ACTUAL prices paid by employers and their employees, from across the country have been analyzed. The real price of health care is notoriously opaque in the United States and this project has allowed everyone to see behind the curtain for the first time. These prices are akin to the receipts of what was paid, not simply prices posted.
We all want high quality healthcare at a fair price. Sage Transparency, the first-of-its-kind, publicly-available, customizable, online dashboard, was created in 2022 by the Employers’ Forum of Indiana. This dashboard includes price and quality data for services provided at hospitals and ASCs across the United States. The aim of Sage Transparency is to provide an easy-to-use tool to inform purchasing decisions.
This website also connects users to resources that examine how hospital prices are set, why price transparency matters, and how these Employer Price Transparency Studies and Sage Transparency are providing information that could create meaningful action to improve the healthcare marketplace.
Latest Study
PT5.1 (RAND 5.1)
Beyond hospital facility prices, physician prices, and ambulatory care surgery center prices, the latest round of the Employer Price Transparency study for the first time also reveals the average price paid for physician-administered medications.
Employer-Led Initiative
Employer Price Transparency Studies
The Employer Price Transparency Studies are comprehensive reports that are part of an ongoing employer-led initiative to measure and report publicly the prices paid for hospital care at the hospital and service-line level. It uses claims data to compare hospital prices in order to enable employers to be better-informed shoppers for health plans and provider networks, and to report hospital prices relative to a Medicare benchmark. PT5.1 (RAND 5.1), the latest report, also includes price data for ambulatory surgery centers and physician-administered medications.
Resources & FAQs
For those seeking additional information on the Employer Price Transparency Studies or how to use Sage Transparency to create meaningful change, we’ve compiled a helpful resource library and a list of frequently asked questions.
In the News
Read the latest news and announcements on employer price transparency and Employers’ Forum of Indiana.
Hospitals charged private insurers 254% of Medicare in 2022: Rand
Modern Healthcare
These Employers Took On Healthcare Costs, and the Fight Got Nasty
The Wall Street Journal
