Tuesday, 19 May 2026 11:20 AM
Company Update
SPRINGFIELD, IL / ACCESS Newswire / May 19, 2026 / A new analysis released today by 3 Axis Advisors, drawing on data from Patient Rights Advocates' hospital drug price finder, reveals striking disparities in what Illinois hospitals charge for the same prescription drugs - including critical cancer treatments.
The research raises fresh questions about hospital pricing practices as state lawmakers consider legislation to expand the federal 340B drug discount program.
"These numbers expose a hospital pricing system where the same drug can carry wildly different price tags for no clear reason," said 3 Axis Advisors president Antonio Ciaccia. "These aren't minor pricing differences; they can amount to tens of thousands of dollars for a single treatment."
The analysis found that prices vary not only from hospital to hospital but from patient to patient within the same hospital. Among the findings:
Prices for a single dose of the cancer drug Keytruda ranged from $133 to $299,461 -- a difference of more than 2,245 times.
Some hospitals charged more than triple the manufacturer's list price and Medicare's reimbursement rate for the same drug.
Within a single hospital, the highest-paying insured patient paid up to 290 times more than the lowest-paying insured patient for an identical drug.
Half of all insurer-negotiated prices exceeded the hospital's own cash price, meaning insured patients paid more than uninsured patients.
The findings come as Illinois lawmakers debate legislation that would expand hospitals' ability to dispense discounted drugs through the federal 340B program.
The analysis used hospital transparency data and Medicare Part B drug spending records for 13 Illinois hospitals reporting prices for Keytruda, one of Medicare's most commonly administered drugs.
Hospitals with the highest average negotiated rates included Rush University Medical Center, Advocate Lutheran General Hospital, and Advocate Children's Hospital - Park Ridge. Hospitals with the lowest included UnityPoint Trinity Moline, Blessing Hospital, and Provident Hospital of Cook County.
"If hospitals are already receiving deep federal discounts on drugs, Illinois patients and employers deserve to know why prices remain so inflated and unpredictable," Ciaccia said. "As policymakers continue to scrutinize the pricing of pharmaceuticals, it is impossible to not consider these disparate and disconnected prices that live within the intersection of hospitals and health insurers."
###
About 3 Axis Advisors
With a primary focus on identifying and analyzing U.S. drug supply chain inefficiencies and cost drivers, 3 Axis Advisors offers unparalleled expertise in project design, data aggregation and analysis, investigative research, and public education. 3 Axis Advisors arms clients with independent data analysis needed to spur change and innovation within their respective industries.
MEDIA CONTACT
Katelyn Moon
[email protected]
202-982-2444
SOURCE: 3 Axis Advisors