Cash and Commercial Negotiated Prices of Physician-Administered Drugs in US Hospitals

Using nationally representative data, we found that for common physician-administered drugs, hospitals' cash prices are frequently lower than their median-and sometimes even their lowest-commercial negotiated prices. This finding is important for uninsured patients and patients enrolled in high-deductible health plans, the number of whom is expected to grow due to recent and prospective policy changes in Medicaid and the individual markets. Assembling patient-friendly databases and applications that incorporate cash prices, the lowest negotiated prices, and Medicare rates could facilitate patients' comparison shopping and enhance patient access.