Inpatient Hospital Costs Explorer

The recent outpouring of large-scale health data collections, the US Government’s contribution to the growing ‘big data’ era , has fostered a need for innovative ways to manage, analyze, and utilize the data to deal with complex issues, particularly related to health care costs.  The IP Hospital Costs Explorer is an interactive data visualization and analysis experience using two datasets: Medicare Provider Charge Data (Inpatient) and Hospital Compare Patient Survey Results Data. The tool enables researchers, clinicians, patients, and caregivers to compare amounts charged by individual hospitals within local markets and nationwide for services that might be furnished in connection with a particular inpatient stay. Users immediately see whether a hospital has high, medium, or low inpatient costs, designated by red (high), yellow (medium), or green (low) circles displayed on a map. When users click on a specific site, flyout menus appear that give more detail about the cost of specific covered charges, allowing easy comparison of costs among hospitals. Users can also compare hospitals based on patient survey results. This is particularly helpful when DRG-related costs are similar between two hospitals. Statistical analysis tools allow users to explore the relationships between hospital costs and county-level health indicators.