Cigna puts L.A. medical costs under the microscrope.

IN the market for a cataract removal? In the Los Angeles area, if you're a member of a Cigna Healthcare preferred provider organization the procedure could cost anywhere from $890 and $3,370 out of pocket, depending on the provider and the specifics of your employer-negotiated plan.

The information, not readily available to insured patients, is newly available online from the Broomfield, Conn.-based Cigna Corp. It's hoping that by providing its 170,000 Los Angeles area members the information needed to do real comparison shopping, it will lower costs for patients and attract additional workers to sign up during its fall enrollment.

For the first time, members will be able to compare the cost of procedures such as colonoscopies, endoscopies, and cardiac catherizations, plus a full range medical imaging services among facilities in their area. They'll also be able to gauge a facility's experience and success in performing certain procedures via a variety of quality markers.

"We have been promoting transparency because part of our philosophy has been the active engagement of consumers in their health care," said Chris De Rosa, president of Cigna's Glendale-based Southern California region. "In order to do that you really have to have (detailed) information for them about costs and quality. That way members can make the decision about how much they want to spend."

That's important because employers have increasingly opted for health plans that keep their costs lower by, shifting more costs to employees via tiered co-payments and variable co-insurance payments.