Way back in 2017, before we were on the road to Nuremberg With Donald Trump, the Washington Post was outraged that hospitals were trying to make a profit. Like most stories involving reporters, economics and healthcare it was both wildly inaccurate and agenda-driven.
The story’s one useful service was it introduced the public to the slightly ominous term “chargemaster.” At first glance, chargemaster might be mistaken as the cause of the so-called epidemic of “mass incarceration,” a fiendish device district attorneys use to jail minorities captured during the government’s regular sweeps in low-income areas.
Even for those who haven’t been to jail, the term has unsavory associations, bringing to mind arrogant, price-gouging monopolies who look upon customers as rubes to be exploited. (Ticketmaster, come on down!)
