A hip replacement in Maine can run north of $44,000. Down the coast in Boston, it’s a different story. There, the same procedure costs just more than $16,000, a fraction of the price. Knee surgeries follow the same pattern. They cost up to $13,500 in Maine, but as little as $3,900 in Boston.

One of the reasons for these massive price discrepancies? There’s a lot more competition among hospitals in Boston.