Have hospital prices increased nearly 300% since 2000, outpacing inflation and wages, as Rep. Hern claimed?

Multiple sources report that hospital prices have risen substantially since 2000, with one citing a 281% increase, outpacing general inflation and wage growth, among other things. 

A 2022 report from Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and a 2025 report from the Paragon Health Institute found that since 2000, hospital prices increased 220% and 281%, respectively. Both noted that hospital prices increased at three times the rate of general inflation. The latter report also found that hospital prices increased at double the rate of hourly wage increases. 

Both reports found that hospital prices increased at almost double the rate of other medical service prices, highlighting hospitals as a driving factor in the rising cost of health care. 

Compared with lower-cost hospitals, higher-cost hospitals had operating costs, revenue, and profits that were 2%, 24%, and 66% higher, respectively, suggesting that higher prices are associated with larger hospital profits rather than higher operating costs.