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Need knee replacement surgery? It may be worthwhile to head for Tucson. That's because the average price for a knee replacement in the Arizona city is $21,976, about $38,000 less than it would in Sacramento, Calif. That's according to a report issued Wednesday by the Health Care Cost Institute. The report, called the National Chartbook on Health Care Prices, uses claims and payment data from three of the largest insurance companies in the U.S. to analyze how prices for procedures vary from state to state, and city to city. The takeaway? Health care prices are crazy. (Kodjak, 4/27)

Huge variations exist in the prices of some of the most common medical procedures across state lines, by according to a report major insurers released Wednesday, but some experts say the data is of little use to consumers who rarely know what they owe until the bills arrive. The insurer-funded Health Care Cost Institute (HCCI) won’t disclose which hospitals or doctors are the high-price culprits and instead are releasing how much states' average prices differ from national average. (O'Donnell, 4/27)

Why does a knee replacement cost $29,000 in Kansas but $40,000 in next-door Colorado? Health care prices are all over the map in the U.S., a new study finds. It digs deeply into the crazy pattern of health costs across the U.S. and shows there is very little consistency. (Fox, 4/27)

Prices of some medical services in Charlotte are 20 percent higher than the national average, according to a new study that contributes to the national push for transparency in health care costs. (Garloch, 4/27)

The cost of medical care for Connecticut patients with private insurance is more than 20 percent above the national average for dozens of medical services, but exactly how much higher can vary widely across the state, according to data released Wednesday and an analysis published in the journal Health Affairs. (Levin Becker, 4/28)