3 ms·
At the end of last year my doctor prescribed a list of blood tests, some of them rather esoteric and cutting edge. As a precaution, I wanted to see if they woul
by Workaccount2 2y ago
At the end of last year my doctor prescribed a list of blood tests, some of them rather esoteric and cutting edge. As a precaution, I wanted to see if they would all be covered and how much my out of pocket cost would be for these if not (or if partially covered).
It took _a week_, composed of two different lab visits and about 4 hours of phone time between the doctor, the lab, and my insurance to figure it out. And in the end, the values ultimately provided to me weren't even correct.
Like what the fuck is going on behind the scenes here?
- kristjansson 2y ago> behind the scenes here? Two giant companies, trying to fuck each other as hard as possible, while not violating the law so egregiously they are made to stop. Healthcare is an incidental byproduct.
- xyst 2y agoInsurance companies have negotiated rates with individual doctors, hospitals, and even individual procedures. Depending on facility, negotiated rate between insurance and facility, and “in network” vs “out of network”. the amount “billed” can change dramatically. Even different plans within the same insurance company can often change the cost to patient. In the USA, there is at least some degree of transparency from hospitals to list their cash prices. But it’s most inaccessible to the common person. Some of the lists are massive and it’s often ordered by cryptic ICD codes. Some third parties have tried to standardize it and make it easily searchable, but I honestly haven’t followed up on it.