Healthcare prices remained flat from August through September

Overall U.S. healthcare prices remained relatively unchanged from August to September 2013, according to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The BLS' Producer Price Indices measure average changes in selling prices received by domestic producers for their output. The September PPI report indicated that prices across the range of healthcare industries were essentially equivalent to those in August, although 1.0 percent higher than a year ago.
The PPI translates into actual or expected reimbursement for a sample of treatments or services.
[See also: Healthcare prices flat through August.]
In the August through September period, the PPI for physician offices, home healthcare services and medical and diagnostic laboratories was identical to that during the prior month.
The PPI for hospitals, dentist offices and nursing care facilities moved slightly up from August to September, increasing 0.1 percent.
The sector with the largest PPI increase in the current period was residential mental retardation facilities, which saw prices increase 0.5 percent from August to September.
The only sector to see a drop in PPI from August through September was blood and organ banks. The PPI for these facilities fell 0.2 percent across the month.
Comparing September 2013 to September 2012, overall healthcare PPIs rose 1.0 percent.
Hospital prices were 1.5 percent higher in September than a year ago, while physician office prices were 0.3 percent higher. Nursing care facility prices increased 0.8 percent from September 2012 to September 2013 and the PPI for dentist offices rose 1.8 percent across the 12-month period.
The PPI for medical and diagnostic laboratories dropped 1.6 percent from September 2012 to September 2013, while prices for home healthcare services fell 0.4 percent during the same period. Residential mental retardation facilities continued to see price increases in 2013 over 2012, with a PPI boost of 2.6 percent from year to year. Blood and organ banks experienced a PPI increase of 0.2 percent in the same period.
The PPIs for healthcare industry segments measure changes in actual or expected reimbursement received for services across the full range of payer types. This includes the negotiated contract rate from the payer plus any portion expected to be paid by the patient.