More transparent pricing would allow patients and families to make better decisions, but there are limitations to how reliably it promotes efficiency and market discipline.
AMA J Ethics. 2022;24(11):E1069-1074. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2022.1069.
Physicians make patients aware of those interventions that they (the patients) may then refuse. In short, informed consent is less about patient decisions than it is about restraining physicians.
Specific advocate guidelines are needed for the protection of children in state custody who are potential research subjects in trials that would expose them to greater-than-minimal risk but also hold the prospect of direct benefit.