To the Editor:

I wanted to correct a misleading statement made by [UMCPP President and CEO] Barry Rabner in your article, about my New York Times article on the relatively high prices for tests at the University Medical Center of
Princeton [“Rabner Questioned On High Cost of UMCPP Test,” page one, Dec. 24, 2014].

Mr. Rabner said: “Asked whether he had explained this to the New York Times reporter, Mr. Rabner said that he had not been contacted by her.”

As I’m sure Mr. Rabner knows, the media relations office at the Medical Center was contacted well before publication by phone and in writing, offering a chance to explain its pricing. It could have put Mr. Rabner on the phone for an interview. Instead it responded with a statement, some of which was in the article.

I’m hoping there is some way to correct that misimpression.

Elisabeth Rosenthal

Senior Writer, New York Times

Editor’s Note: Mr. Charlap’s procedure at UMCPP was the subject of Elisabeth Rosenthal’s New York Times article in which UMCPP President and CEO Barry Rabner was quoted. Copies of the letters from Mr. Charlap and Ms. Rosenthal were forwarded to Mr. Rabner, who sent the following response: 

With regard to Ms. Rosenthal’s letter, I do not recall saying that she had not contacted me. If I did, I misspoke. She obviously had, and we responded in writing as she noted.

In response to Mr. Charlap’s letter, hospital charges and reimbursements are complex issues. However, we always make every effort to be transparent, and I responded fully to the questions asked by the reporter.