Comments on: Free Market Medicine and Lab Tests

By: WhiteCoat

WhiteCoat — Mon, 30 May 2011 19:48:52 +0000

I’m with you.
Most states have consumer fraud statutes. If you have written proof that they would not provide you with a price before the procedure/test, you probably could tell them to take a hike in small claims court.

By: Marilyn

Marilyn — Mon, 30 May 2011 18:19:43 +0000

When we were without insurance, I also tried to get prices out of my medical system. They couldn’t tell me outright. I had to go through layers of people and more than two weeks waiting before someone could give me a price for a lab test.

That is ridiculous.

And I was able to save a lot of money after that by going through a “patient directed testing” service.

By: DefendUSA

DefendUSA — Mon, 30 May 2011 18:05:57 +0000

I wish I could find the price of an MRI since I have to pay for it myself. No one seems to have that info. (wink, wink)
I thought one of my kids had a hernia. I called to ask the price for a cash paying patient. It was going to cost me 600 for the surgery…and again, not one anesthesiologist would give a price for his cost.
I wish I could tell them all to take a hike.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Sat, 28 May 2011 19:53:32 +0000

Is this a serious question? Stores have to pay a fee to credit card companies for every single transaction that is done using plastic. By encouraging you to use cash, they don’t have to do this fee and they pass the savings on to you. Buying gas and buying medical care aren’t even in the same league.

By: A surgeon

A surgeon — Sat, 28 May 2011 16:08:58 +0000

Well I am a surgeon and there is no reason to order coags on someone not taking anticoagulants and without a family or personal history of bleeding disorders. it is not cost effective. with ASA or plavix, you just have the patient stop taking them 7 days in advance.

By: doc99

doc99 — Sat, 28 May 2011 13:56:31 +0000

At the Gas Stateion this morning, paying cash resulted in a ten cents a gallon discount. In medical care, paying cash results in a mark-up. What’s wrong with this picture?

By: PippaGrey

PippaGrey — Fri, 27 May 2011 16:03:02 +0000

Pharmacies are as bad. Years ago I had to fill some scripts for a flu/bronchitis episode and the Tricare computers were down so I couldn’t prove that I had insurance. The Flovent cost me $70. Two days later I went back and they ran the stuff again, and between my co-pay and the insurance they accepted $40. I can’t believe that they were losing money on the $40, nor that they have to pay the manufacturer based on what they can sell it for. So folks without a prescription plan get hit 75% more?

I’d like to see a system where pharmacies charge X for drug Y to everyone, the only question being how much of that comes from the patient and how much (if any) from their insurance.

By: Bonnie

Bonnie — Fri, 27 May 2011 13:17:09 +0000

For patients without insurance, most hospital billing offices are willing to negotiate to the “insurance” discount rate just so they get paid at all. The trick is, the patient has to know to ask for that rate. They don’t offer it up front without prompt.

By: JustADoc

JustADoc — Fri, 27 May 2011 09:33:34 +0000

I’m not a surgeon, but I think it might be nice to know that my patient that I am about to cut on doesn’t have undiagnosed Von Willebrand’s(or other less common clotting errors) before I begin major surgery on him. It is a fairly common but often unknown diagnosis.

By: newsouthzach

newsouthzach — Fri, 27 May 2011 06:47:29 +0000

The problem of course is that the insurance companies negotiate some large discount off the “standard” rate — so the standard rate has to be astronomical!