[dragonwriter]

> These are the prices they charge people who lack insurance.

No, they are the fake numbers they keep around as starting points so that (1) insurance can claim to have negotiated price down, and (2) they can claim the inflated numbers to be the “usual and customary charge to the general public” for purposes of government programs like Medicaid which include the usual and customary charge to the general public as one of the factors in reimbursement rates.

> They're very real if you get a bill with them on it.

A number of providers give an automatic, no negotiation needed discount from the chargemaster to uninsured patients, and most of the rest expect to allow themselves to be negotiated down. The chargemaster isn't the real price, and has no consistent relationship to it across providers.