[a-saleh]

As far as I know, point of the exorbitant fees is the weird process of collective bargaining between the care-providers and insurers.

I.e. you, as the hospital, inflate your price, by X00% margin over what you actually plan to charge the insurance. Then you let the insurance negotiators negotiate, and you negotiate down to the reasonable price.

This looks really good on the paper. Unfortunately, you as a patient, if you don't have good coverage, you end up paying the inflated price, that you didn't really have the chance of negotiating (and wouldn't really have the chance even if you hadn't been unconcious ;)

Like, if I compare it to Czech Republic, where I live (or even Germany), the prices seem much more reasonable (i.e. you would be able to get a complication-free birth in hospital for ~400$, more complicated, i.e. cesarean section ~1500$, including hospital stay, in US it seem to be 5-10x as much)

[kalleboo]

> that you didn't really have the chance of negotiating

Not American, but from what I've read in these types of news articles, you often CAN negotiate it down a lot, but when you get a huge bill in the mail, the first thing you think isn't "I'm going to try to haggle down my $5000 bill with this huge hospital" you think "I'm so screwed. Time to google 'personal bankruptcy', was it 7 years?". Pharmaceutical companies are also always saying that they will subsidize prescription medications for those who can't afford it, but I dunno how much that is BS or not.

[a-saleh]

Oh, good to know. From the horror stories you usually read in the news it seemed that "try to haggle down my $5000 bill with this huge hospital" is something you just don't get to do, if you are a patient, I will remember that if that ever comes up (even though I hope it doesn't :)

[maxerickson]

If you use insurance they are less willing to negotiate.

(but you are getting the negotiated price anyway; the paranoid part of my brain thinks they run a scam here by recoding bills that come after the deductible has been met, which is a different sort of negotiation than agreeing on prices for services)

[gm-conspiracy]

The urgent care clinic near me will charge $200 for a visit if you show insurance.

If you claim to not have insurance, the same visit is $80.

[kalleboo]

I wonder what the result would be of the US government requiring all hospitals to have a public, fixed, non-negotiable price list the same for all insured and uninsured.