Chris Faddis, president of Solidarity HealthShare, sent an open letter to Elon Musk and U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. to enforce the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services “Hospital Price Transparency Rule.”
“We ask that you enforce the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Hospital Price Transparency Rule which took effect during President Trump’s his first presidential term,” said Faddis. “Those rules currently require hospitals to publish the prices of more than 300 common procedures, including MRIs and blood tests in ‘machine-readable’ files online for all patients to see before receiving care.”
“Nearly 80 percent of American hospitals, however, are not complying with these commonsense rules,” Faddis said. Kept in the dark by their hospitals, some patients are delaying necessary medical treatment out of fear of unknown costs. Others are paying steep prices due to these hospitals’ misconduct.”
The Hospital Price Transparency Rule, introduced during President Donald Trump's first term, mandated that as of January 1, 2021, all U.S. hospitals must publicly disclose clear and accessible pricing information online. This includes a comprehensive machine-readable file detailing standard charges for all items and services, as well as a consumer-friendly display of prices for at least 300 "shoppable" services—those that can be scheduled in advance, such as X-rays or elective surgeries. The rule aims to empower patients to compare prices across hospitals and make informed decisions about their healthcare, fostering competition and potentially driving down costs.
92 percent of respondents in a Patient Right poll released in Sept. 2024 said they support efforts by the federal government to “requir[e] hospitals and health insurance companies to provide real, actual prices – not estimates” before the start of treatment, reported The Hill.
In his letter, Faddis said that a senior citizen from Ohio, Kyunghee Lee, “saw her hospital bills skyrocket when her doctor’s office was purchased by a larger hospital system. Without warning, Lee’s annual steroid injection increased in 2021 more than 1,000 percent – from $30 to over $300 – even though her medication, treatment plan and doctor remained the same.”
“This type of deception and waste would never be tolerated in any other industry,” wrote Faddis.
Solidarity HealthShare is a nonprofit healthcare sharing ministry that facilitates the sharing of medical expenses among its members based on Christian values. The organization offers an alternative to traditional health insurance, allowing members to contribute monthly funds that are used to pay for eligible medical costs. Solidarity HealthShare advocates for healthcare price transparency and has reported success in reducing medical expenses for its members through reference-based pricing models. The organization has actively called for stronger enforcement of hospital price transparency regulations.
Musk is the senior advisor to The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), established on January 20, 2025, by President Donald Trump to modernize federal technology and enhance governmental efficiency.
Kennedy Jr. was confirmed as the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services on February 13, 2025, with a Senate vote of 52-48. Kennedy is an environmental lawyer and author who has been involved in environmental advocacy and public health issues. He is the son of former U.S. Senator Robert F. Kennedy and the nephew of former President John F. Kennedy.
