The rising cost of health care is one of the greatest national challenges in the United States. Yet, according to a recent U. S. study, there may be a small and simple way of reducing costs next time a patient visits the hospital.

The study, released from the University of Miami and Brown University, demonstrated that it is possible to reduce hospital bills just by making doctors aware of the cost of a routine blood test.

After 11-weeks, the study showed that it is possible to reduce the daily bills for blood tests by as much as 27%.

While doctors are equipped with the medical expertise to deliver high quality care, this does not mean that they are familiar with the costs of providing different services.

According to Elizabeth Stuebing, a study co-author and a fellow in trauma and critical care at the University of Miami's Miller School of Medicine, "We never see the dollar amount of anything".

Many experts believe that routine blood tests are run far more often than what is medically necessary.

"Simply knowing the costs helps these providers be more judicious about their test ordering behavior", stated Stuebing.

Benedict Cosimi, a professor of surgery at Harvard Medical School suggested that, "We know medical care is costing more than it has to…There are some simple solutions".