money1The latest issue of Money magazine offers a shortened version of a report also summarized at Johns Hopkins Magazine. Here’s the Money version:

Percentage saved when docs know a test’s cost

Exposure to prices can inoculate you against overspending — even when it’s not your money. A new Johns Hopkins study found that doctors shown the bill for lab tests ordered fewer of them, cutting expenditures 9.6%. “Most medical care is delivered in a cost vacuum,” says co-author Leonard Feldman. “Information helps providers be more cost-conscious.”

Imagine how much more savings we might see if we adopted more elements of consumer-driven health care.