3 ms·

> Like list prices are often incredibly far removed from the actual dollars paid, and the actual amount paid is all dependent on insurer contracts. I just had

> Like list prices are often incredibly far removed from the actual dollars paid, and the actual amount paid is all dependent on insurer contracts. I just had $5k worth of bills from the birth of my last child (the amount wasn't surprising, pretty much exactly what the insurance estimated for standard pregnancy). I called, credit card in hand, and asked if they have any discounts for paying on time. They gave me a 35% discount on the spot! It still feels vaguely like insurance fraud because the $5k amount is what is going towards the deductibles...

pishpash 9y ago
Think of it this way, if $3250 is going towards deductibles all the time, your deductibles and other insurance costs would also be lower by 35%.
jfoutz 9y ago
I haven't looked at it in a couple of years, but medicare used to publish what they pay, and the random adjustments based on location and other factors i don't recall. medicare doesn't negotiate. they just pay a fixed cost up front.
- epmaybe 9y ago
  data is still on the CMS website: https://data.cms.gov https://data.cms.gov
gowld 9y ago
You mean because insurance quotes your copays as % amounts, not $ amounts?
- positr0n 9y ago
  Yes I think that's what I mean. We have a $5k individual deductible. After a deductible is met, we pay 20% coinsurance. Before the deductible we pay 100%. Making up some numbers, my wife had already spent $3k on the OB-GYN which counts toward the deductible. The hospital billed us $7500. So $2k we pay to finish meeting the deductible and then 20% of the remaining $5500 is $1500, so our portion of the hospital bill is $3500. If the insurance company knew we'd get a discount on our portion of the final bill, that calculation for how much of the bill we'd only have to pay 20% of would be different.
DisposableMike 9y ago
Be careful. I did this exact thing with my first child, but they billed my insurance company for the 35% they discounted, anyway. After something like 50 phone calls and hours and hours on the phone with people who said they would "take care of it", I finally got taken to collections and ended up paying it to avoid damaging my credit.

pishpash 9y ago

Think of it this way, if $3250 is going towards deductibles all the time, your deductibles and other insurance costs would also be lower by 35%.

jfoutz 9y ago

I haven't looked at it in a couple of years, but medicare used to publish what they pay, and the random adjustments based on location and other factors i don't recall. medicare doesn't negotiate. they just pay a fixed cost up front.

epmaybe 9y ago
data is still on the CMS website: https://data.cms.gov https://data.cms.gov

gowld 9y ago

You mean because insurance quotes your copays as % amounts, not $ amounts?

positr0n 9y ago
Yes I think that's what I mean. We have a $5k individual deductible. After a deductible is met, we pay 20% coinsurance. Before the deductible we pay 100%. Making up some numbers, my wife had already spent $3k on the OB-GYN which counts toward the deductible. The hospital billed us $7500. So $2k we pay to finish meeting the deductible and then 20% of the remaining $5500 is $1500, so our portion of the hospital bill is $3500. If the insurance company knew we'd get a discount on our portion of the final bill, that calculation for how much of the bill we'd only have to pay 20% of would be different.

DisposableMike 9y ago

Be careful. I did this exact thing with my first child, but they billed my insurance company for the 35% they discounted, anyway. After something like 50 phone calls and hours and hours on the phone with people who said they would "take care of it", I finally got taken to collections and ended up paying it to avoid damaging my credit.