Eight Oklahoma hospitals warned over price transparency; Here’s who’s on the list

More than 500 hospitals nationwide, including eight in Oklahoma, received warning letters from federal regulators in June over alleged failures to comply with hospital price transparency requirements.

The warnings were issued as the Trump administration increased enforcement of federal rules requiring hospitals to make healthcare pricing information publicly available to consumers.

Federal Hospital Price Transparency regulations took effect in 2021 and require hospitals to publish “machine-readable files containing negotiated rates, self-pay rates, and chargemaster information,” according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Hospitals also must provide consumer-friendly pricing information for at least 300 shoppable services.

Hospitals found to be out of compliance can face civil monetary penalties of up to $2 million annually until corrective action plans are implemented.

• More than 500 U.S. hospitals, including eight in Oklahoma, received federal warning letters in June over hospital price transparency compliance.
• Federal regulations require hospitals to publish machine-readable pricing files and consumer-friendly information for at least 300 shoppable services.
• Hillcrest Medical Center and Ascension St. John Broken Arrow said they have addressed issues identified by regulators and remain compliant.
• Oklahoma recently expanded healthcare price transparency requirements through state-level initiatives and legislation.

The Oklahoma hospitals included on the warning list are:

• Ascension St. John Broken Arrow, Broken Arrow (Warning Notice)
• Clinton Regional Hospital, Clinton (Warning Notice)
• Great Plains Regional Medical Center, Elk City (Corrective Action Plan Request)
• Hillcrest Medical Center, Tulsa (Warning Notice)
• Inspire Specialty Hospital, Midwest City (Corrective Action Plan Request)
• Mangum Regional Medical Center, Mangum (Warning Notice)
• Oklahoma State University Medical Center, Tulsa (Warning Notice)
• St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center, Enid (Warning Notice)

The Associated Press published the complete national list of hospitals that received warning letters. (Nationwide List.)

Hillcrest Medical Center said it addressed the issue cited by CMS and that the matter was resolved earlier this year.

Statement from Hillcrest Medical Center:

Hillcrest is compliant with current federal hospital price transparency requirements and has worked to ensure patient cost estimate tools and standard charge files for our facilities are available online and through patient financial services. We recently reviewed our files to ensure continued alignment with CMS requirements and recent guidance updates, which included minor technical updates related to naming conventions and file formatting specifications. Those updates were completed, and CMS closed the matter in May. We remain committed to providing patients with access to pricing information and maintaining compliance with all applicable regulations.”

An Ascension spokesperson said the warning involved a minor technical issue that has since been corrected.

Statement from Ascension St. John Broken Arrow:

“Ascension adheres to federal price transparency regulations and works diligently with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to ensure ongoing compliance. As regulations change, including the January 1, 2026, CMS policy updates, Ascension continually updates its price transparency data. The recent CMS warning letters identified a minor technical error in a specific subset of our facilities’ files. This technical error was resolved pursuant to CMS’s guidelines. The integrity of our pricing data has never been disputed by CMS.

We are committed to providing patients and their families with the information they need to make informed decisions about their healthcare, including access to up-to-date pricing information. Ascension has earned national recognition from the Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA) for excellence in patient financial communications, a distinction awarded to health systems that meet rigorous, independent standards for clarity, transparency, and consistency.

Beyond meeting regulatory requirements, we have invested in robust tools and resources designed to help patients better understand the cost of their care. Patients can access our online price estimator, speak with our patient financial services team for personalized assistance, and receive cost estimates after scheduling services to help them plan for potential expenses.

Ascension remains focused on delivering high-quality, compassionate care while advocating for greater access and affordability for the communities we serve.”

News 9 and News On 6 have contacted additional hospitals on the list and will update this story as responses are received.

Oklahoma lawmakers and state officials have taken steps in recent years to increase healthcare price transparency.

Gov. Kevin Stitt announced the Oklahoma Hospital Price Finder Tool in 2025, a resource designed to help patients compare hospital prices and identify potential billing discrepancies.

State lawmakers also approved Senate Bill 889 in 2025, which codified federal hospital price transparency requirements under Oklahoma law and established enforcement mechanisms. The law also prohibits medical debt collection by hospitals that are not compliant with transparency requirements.

Advocates for hospital price transparency laws, like the non-profit PatientRightsAdvocate, argue that hospitals must provide easily accessible pricing information so that Oklahomans can seek affordable care, be protected from overcharging, and benefit from financial certainty.

Federal regulators can require hospitals to submit corrective action plans and may impose financial penalties if compliance issues are not addressed. Hospitals receiving warning letters can work with CMS to correct deficiencies. If issues are not corrected, hospitals could face fines of up to $2 million a year.