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Bill

HB 547

Hospitals - Price Transparency - Requirements and Fund

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Lauren Arikan and 7 co-sponsors

Maryland bill requires hospitals to publicly disclose pricing information and establishes funding mechanism to support transparency compliance and enforcement.

Hearing 2/12 at 1:00 p.m.
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Bill Summary · HB 547

Legislative bill overview

HB 547 mandates that hospitals in Maryland increase price transparency by publicly disclosing their pricing information and establishing requirements for how this information is presented to patients. The bill likely creates a fund or mechanism to support hospital compliance with these new transparency obligations and potentially to finance enforcement or educational efforts.

Why is this important

Healthcare pricing is notoriously opaque, leaving patients unable to compare costs before receiving care or understand their financial liability in advance. Transparency requirements can empower consumers to make informed decisions, potentially reduce unnecessary procedures, and create competitive pressure on hospitals to justify their pricing—though implementation details critically affect whether patients can actually use this information practically.

Potential points of contention

  • Implementation burden and costs: Hospitals argue compliance is expensive and administratively complex; supporters counter that transparency benefits justify these costs
  • Scope of disclosure: Disagreement over whether pricing must include negotiated rates with insurance companies (proprietary information hospitals protect) versus only cash prices, and which procedures must be disclosed
  • Practical usability: Critics question whether average patients can meaningfully use complex pricing data without professional help, while advocates believe information access alone drives systemic change

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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