A new city Office of Health Care Accountability will force all New York City hospitals to disclose what they charge for medical procedures and make it harder for them to engage in price gouging.

The UFT and other municipal unions lobbied hard for the Health Care Accountability and Consumer Protection Act, which the City Council approved unanimously and Mayor Eric Adams signed into law in June. The new office will increase accountability and transparency by auditing New York City’s spending on employee health care and maintaining a website with prices for all medical procedures at local hospitals.

The Office of Health Care Accountability will “finally uncover the hidden costs and expose the price gouging that has plagued our health care system for far too long” and “curb excessive health care prices,” said Manhattan Council Member Julie Menin, who sponsored the legislation.

New York City spends $11 billion a year — 10% of its budget — on health care for city employees and retirees, up from $6.3 billion in 2017 and $1.6 billion in 2000. 

Price transparency measures in other states have helped reduce health care costs, according to Menin. 

A report commissioned by SEIU 32BJ found that hospital charges accounted for nearly 40% of all costs related to health care and the city could be overpaying private hospitals by as much as $2.4 billion annually. The cost of key procedures varied greatly from hospital to hospital, according to the report. A C-section, for example, cost $17,861 at NYC Health+Hospitals facilities but $55,077 at Montefiore Medical Center.

“The so-called nonprofit hospitals in New York City are as aggressive on pricing as any for-profit corporation. Until now they were allowed to hide their prices,” UFT President Michael Mulgrew said. “We hope this new transparency will level the playing field for ordinary New Yorkers, including our city workers.”

New York City is the first municipality in the country to adopt a health care accountability law. The law takes effect in February 2024.