Trump Readies Order on Disclosure of Health Costs, WSJ Says

(Bloomberg) -- The Trump administration is preparing to release an executive order as early as next week that would require greater price disclosure in the health-care industry, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the situation.

Under the order, federal agencies may gain power to force industry players to divulge cost data, the newspaper said, and agencies such as the Justice Department may take on regional hospital plans and insurers that are believed to be driving up the cost of care.

Health-care costs, such as prices for drugs and procedures that insurers pay to hospitals and companies, have long been kept out of the public eye. The White House has been working for months on a way to provide consumers and employers with more detailed pricing information in hopes of putting pressure on health costs.

Discussions of the details of the order are planned for Friday at the White House, the Journal reported, citing a person familiar with the situation.

To contact the reporter on this story: John Lauerman in London at jlauerman@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Eric Pfanner at epfanner1@bloomberg.net, John J. Edwards III

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