Chris Faddis, president of Solidarity HealthShare, expressed support for the Trump administration's executive order on healthcare price transparency, suggesting it will lead to a more competitive and affordable system. He articulated this view in an opinion piece published on March 12.
"Trump's executive order to restore healthcare price transparency comes not a moment too soon," said Faddis. "It aims to make 'meaningful price information available to patients to support a more competitive, innovative, affordable, and higher quality healthcare system' by ensuring hospitals comply with the law. Going forward, it's the administration's order that 'machine-readable file with negotiated rates for every single service the hospital provides' be available to all those who are tired of healthcare sticker shock. The era of fraud and abuse from our health providers must end."
On February 25, President Trump signed an executive order titled "Making America Healthy Again by Empowering Patients with Clear, Accurate, and Actionable Healthcare Pricing Information." This directive requires hospitals and insurers to disclose actual prices of items and services rather than estimates. The aim is to enhance price transparency within the healthcare system. The order also instructs federal agencies to standardize pricing information for comparability across hospitals and health plans, including prescription drug prices, according to The White House.
According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), healthcare spending in the United States reached $4.9 trillion in 2023, marking a 7.5% increase from the previous year. This rise was attributed to accelerated growth in private health insurance and Medicare expenditures. The CMS report also noted that the health sector's share of the economy in 2023 was 17.6%, slightly up from 17.4% in 2022.
A report by PatientRightsAdvocate.org indicated that as of February 2025, only 24.5% of 2,000 reviewed hospitals were fully complying with the federal Hospital Price Transparency Rule. This rule has been effective since January 1, 2021, requiring hospitals to publicly disclose service costs. The report highlighted that 116 hospitals (5.8%) did not post any usable standard charges file, indicating total non-compliance.
Faddis is also known as the co-founder and President of Solidarity HealthShare, a national not-for-profit ministry offering an alternative approach to funding healthcare costs. The organization emphasizes ethical and affordable healthcare solutions aligned with Catholic beliefs. He is also the author of "It is Well – Life in the Storm," a memoir about his journey with his late wife during her battle with colon cancer.
Solidarity HealthShare operates as a healthcare sharing ministry providing a community-based approach to managing healthcare costs. Members share medical expenses based on ethical and moral values while promoting transparency and affordability in healthcare. The organization functions on principles of solidarity and subsidiarity, encouraging members to support one another directly and address healthcare issues at the community level.
