The sad reality of our healthcare system is that it does NOT operate under free market principles, hospitals do NOT list the prices they will charge.

http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/mone...lth-costs-wide-differences-locally_n.htm

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WASHINGTON � Patients pay as much as 683% more for the same medical procedures, such as MRIs or CT scans, in the same town, depending on which doctor they choose, according to a study by a national health care group.


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But if a patient does not know how much a procedure costs, he or she gets stuck with the remainder of the bill if it goes above that average price.

"It helps the small business," McClure said, "but the consumer's left out in the cold."

Providers, he said, often don't know real costs, either. When asked by patients for the cost of a procedure, providers often say they need to check with the insurer. The patient only learns the real cost when the bill arrives, McClure said. Legal reasons often prevent providers from discussing cost differences.



"Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence". John Adams

"A dishonest man can always be trusted to be dishonest". Captain Jack Sparrow