Brooks J, Dor A & Wong H (1997)

‘Hospital-Insurer Bargaining: An Empirical Investigation of Appendectomy Pricing’

Journal of Health Economics 16, pp.417-434.

Estimates the relative bargaining power of health insurers vs. hospitals, using panel data on appendectomy cases.

Greater hospital competition reduces hospital bargaining power and leads to greater price discounts.
On average neither hospitals nor firms have complete bargaining power, but hospitals have relatively more than firms.
Hospital bargaining power is diminishing (during the sample period).