In October, Smith testified before the US Senate Special Committee on Aging as part of a panel on price transparency and drug costs. In a plaid blazer and tortoiseshell glasses, he used his six minutes to walk senators through SCO’s creation story and share a few tales from the hospital pricing crypt, including one about a family that declined a $72,000 tonsillectomy at a hospital outside Dallas in favor of the $3,875 version being prepped during Businessweek’s visit to Oklahoma City.

 

How a Die-Hard Libertarian Is Negotiating Lower Health-Care Costs

An anesthesiologist has spent decades pushing his surgery center toward more transparent prices. Others are now following his lead.

By Rowan Moore Gerety

March 10, 2026 at 6:00 AM EDT