In my case, not hitting the deductible is the wrong metric. You are still benefitting from the insurer's negotiation of lower rates for all procedures. For exa

In my case, not hitting the deductible is the wrong metric. You are still benefitting from the insurer's negotiation of lower rates for all procedures. For example, your insurer may have negotiated $0 for standard bloodwork. The parent's acknowledgement that "this is how insurance works" doesn't change the fact: that IS how insurance works. Coverage of a risk has a value, even if that risk does not materialize. (This is easier to understand from the point of view of the finance markets, but it's the same everywhere.)