The medical system in this country is totally fucked.

[Spider-Dan]

To be perfectly honest: I have no idea what a "reasonable" price for a scan is in the first place.
So you tell me that $24K is unreasonable, $5K is the high end, and $3K is what they actually charged.  How long did the scan take?  What does $3K convert to in an hourly wage?

The prices are all just made up, man.

[fyo]

To be perfectly honest: I have no idea what a "reasonable" price for a scan is in the first place.
So you tell me that $24K is unreasonable, $5K is the high end, and $3K is what they actually charged.  How long did the scan take?  What does $3K convert to in an hourly wage?

The prices are all just made up, man.

You can check the "self pay" prices at any clinic that offers CT scans. In the Miami area, prices seem to start around $300 for a simple non-contrast CT scan. Or you can use a price comparison site like:

https://www.newchoicehealth.com/places/florida/miami/ct-scan/

[Spider-Dan]

Yeah, I'm aware that cash prices for medical services are much less (having spent most of the '00s without health insurance).  But the prices are still completely arbitrary across the board.

On what basis can we, as laymen, say whether a CT scan should be $300, $3000, or $30K?  What's the difference between a CT scan that is price gouging, and a CT scan that is too cheap to be sustainable without being subsidized by overpayments from insurance companies?

[masterfins]

Yeah, I'm aware that cash prices for medical services are much less (having spent most of the '00s without health insurance).  But the prices are still completely arbitrary across the board.

On what basis can we, as laymen, say whether a CT scan should be $300, $3000, or $30K?  What's the difference between a CT scan that is price gouging, and a CT scan that is too cheap to be sustainable without being subsidized by overpayments from insurance companies?

I'm not arguing with you, but the fact there is a "cash price" and an "insurance price" is fucked up.  A few years ago I read an article about a guy that if he needed medical services he would tell the provider he didn't have insurance to get the cash price, which ended up being cheaper than the co-pay or deductible he would owe.  Then he would turn the payment into his insurance company to be applied against his annual deductible.  It's messed up that people have to go to these lengths.  I'm against universal medical care, but the healthcare industry is in need of regulation.

[Spider-Dan]

A few years ago I read an article about a guy that if he needed medical services he would tell the provider he didn't have insurance to get the cash price, which ended up being cheaper than the co-pay or deductible he would owe.  Then he would turn the payment into his insurance company to be applied against his annual deductible.

That's a dangerous game.  If the insurance company denies your claim, you have effectively uncapped your maximum expenses (beyond your annual deductible).