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At every hospital I've ever been to (N=3) that answer is a firm "no". With one hospital the price was automatically knocked down 75% before any negotiations too
by bhb916 14y ago
At every hospital I've ever been to (N=3) that answer is a firm "no". With one hospital the price was automatically knocked down 75% before any negotiations took place and this policy was advertised everywhere. At another hospital I simply had to speak to a account manager to get a drastic reduction (> 80%). The third hospital took a harder line, but ultimately caved. If you are uninsured you should never pay more than 15% spread out over 6-12 months (less if you're going to pay in a lump sum). Everything is negotiable.
- dguaraglia 14y agoSo, basically, the list price is just an inflated number they can use so insurance companies pay them just enough to cover what they'd charge everyone else. This, my friends, is what madness looks like.
- nodata 14y agoNot madness! Capitalist free-market efficiency!
- bhb916 14y agoA real driver for the inflated price is so that they can cover the marginal loss they're taking on every Medicare patient. That loss is only going to get worse as the program expands.
- dguaraglia 14y agoThe whole joke about it is that they aren't taking a loss they are just not profiting as much, which is a completely different thing. It's like me saying I don't have a drinking problem because I only drank 2 bottles of vodka before lunch, instead of the 3 I could've drank. In any other industry the practice of inflating the value would be illegal, specially when done in the cartelesque way it's done in health insurance/healthcare. 'Luckily' the health insurance industries has managed to lobby its way into getting all kind of exceptions, and our representatives are hard at work to keep it that way.
- bhb916 14y agoA close friend of mine is an ophthalmologist. The Medicare reimbursement rate for a cataract surgery is a little over $300. This is surgery that restores eyesight. How much would you pay to have your eyesight restored? It's clearly not market rate. I guarantee that at least in this situation his practice is not turning a profit on these surgeries. $300 certainly doesn't cover the labor expense. This story is, of course, anecdotal. I'd be eager to hear of similar stories of Medicare reimbursing appropriately.