Are expensive research hospitals pricing themselves out of the health care market? It's possible, if recent developments in Los Angeles are a sign of what's to come, according to a medical industry research group. HealthLeaders-InterStudy says Los Angeles' decision to go with Anthem Blue Cross for its 27,000 city workers shows that employers are eager to trim costs by avoiding high-priced academic and research institutions. The city's arrangement with Anthem, which excludes doctors from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and UCLA Health System, would stop referrals to those pricier, but often better, hospitals, according to HealthLeaders.
