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Originally Posted by Freesail99
That statement just isn't true in the real world. There are two prices, the full price for those who don't have insurance, and the discounted price ( read the price the HMO will pay the medical provider ). This is a sad fact of life. Did you know you can also negotiate the price of a procedure at a hospital? I do it all the time.
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I'm a bit confused by the above but do know that the insurance companies pay at the highest rates to physicians and hospitals. If you're paying cash, you can commonly negotiate a $225 X-ray down to $150. I don't think that anyone thinks that there is $75 worth of paperwork involved in submitting it to the insurance company or, if there is, that there is a valid reason for it. Paying cash for services is as close the the free market as we come in health care and it does reveal that prices are always negotiable. What this fact does reveal is that there is a lot of fat in the health care industry, much of it government originated, and that we can make it far more competitive.