[zaroth]

It should be illegal to charge two different people two different prices for the same procedure at the same facility.

The whole model of negotiated rates, rebates, etc. needs to go.

I also think the concept of networks is bizarre on the face of it. A certified medical provider should be covered to perform procedures in their area of expertise. Period.

Personally I like the idea of anyone who wants to be able to buy into Medicare A & B. And if you don’t have Medicare then you can always pay the Medicare rate of the procedure at 100% (versus having Medicare where your copay is 20%).

If insurance companies can’t compete with that then great.

[davidjnelson]

I agree with you. I wonder what it would take to get rid of those discounts in terms of legislature and how individual voters could work together to fix it. The current system is ridiculous. A $17 procedure should not be billed at $1,200 "because they can".

[dmix]

So the solution is more layers of administration over the prices of the pseudo marketplace?

[zaroth]

How is that a fair representation of what I proposed?

I think part of the problem is absolutely opaque, discriminatory, and predatory pricing.

I went to get a basic blood count last month. I gave the lab my insurance card, but they must have copied a number wrong, because when I got the bill they had me down as self insured, and had a bill which said;

  Lab Services     :  $1,541.00
  Patient Adjust   : -$  385.25
  Total Due        :  $1,155.75

I called back and gave them my insurance card and they said ignore the bill a new one will come in the mail.

Last week I got the new bill:

  Lab Services     :  $   17.12
  Insurance Pay    :  $   12.12
  Total Due        :  $    5.00

Yes, I absolutely think it should be illegal to try to bilk a cash carrying customer over $1,000 for a $17 blood count test.