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CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — New Hampshire is once again being praised for helping people make educated choices about health care, and now it has some company.
Last year, New Hampshire was the only state to receive an "A'' rating from two groups, the Catalyst for Payment Reform and the Health Care Incentives Improvement Institute. In the most recent ratings, Colorado and Maine also got A's, while 43 states got "F'' grades for failing to meet even minimum standards.
New Hampshire's top grade derives from the free health price transparency website, www.NHHealthCost.org, that the state insurance department developed in 2007 and overhauled earlier this year.
The site allows residents to compare the price of various health care services across doctors, hospitals and outpatient facilities.
"People in the Granite State do their research before any important purchase, such as buying a car," said New Hampshire Insurance Commissioner Roger Sevigny. "They ought to have that same right when it comes to their health care expenses. We created the HealthCost website for them."
The site's overhaul nearly doubled the number of medical procedures available, and added information on dental procedures, physical therapy, and behavioral health and lab tests.
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