CMS, HHS Demand that Hospitals Post Prices or Face Penalties

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have notified more than 500 hospitals of noncompliance with federal hospital price transparency requirements and signaled that enforcement efforts will intensify in the coming months.

Hospitals have received warning notices and requests to submit corrective action plans following CMS compliance reviews conducted since April, according to HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz, MD. In a video posted on social media, Secretary Kennedy and Administrator Oz stated that the "grace period has ended and there are no further extensions. Hospitals should post their real prices. Come into compliance immediately - or prepare for serious consequences."

Since 2021, federal hospital price transparency requirements have required hospitals to publish a machine-readable file with standard charges for all items and services, as well as consumer-friendly pricing information for shoppable services. In the Calendar Year 2026 Outpatient Prospect Payment System final rule, CMS added requirements intended to standardize and improve the usability of hospital pricing data, including new machine-readable file data elements, attestation requirements, and National Provider Identifier reporting requirements.

Although the new requirements took effect Jan. 1, CMS delayed enforcement until April 1 to give hospitals time to update their systems and comply with the revised standards. The administration's recent announcement appears to reflect the results of compliance reviews and audits conducted since enforcement began.

Under CMS' enforcement process, noncompliant hospitals first receive a warning notice and are generally given 90 days to correct deficiencies. If the hospital remains noncompliant, CMS may issue a corrective action plan request that requires the hospital to propose a timeline for achieving compliance and submit a plan within 45 days. Hospitals that fail to complete the required corrective actions then may be subject to civil monetary penalties.

Civil monetary penalties vary by hospital size. For hospitals with more than 30 beds, penalties are assessed on a per-bed basis and can reach up to $5,500 per day or $2 million annually. As CMS continues its compliance reviews, the recent notifications signal that hospital price transparency remains a key administration priority.

Contact Director of Policy Rob Nelb, MPH, at [email protected] or 202.585.0127 with questions.