Healthcare: Paying cash cost me less than paying my deductible. (state, claim)
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The first was when we were at grannies for Christmas 12 years ago. My Mother-in-laws dog(wiener dog), bit my daughter.
The hospital didn't question me, the insurance company drilled me who, what, when and where....
The second time, she was goofing off with my nephew, while staying a week during a summer, and fell up against the barbwire fence. Granny took her to the hospital.
Same drill, from the insurance company.
I saw the billing from the hospital to the insurance.
The first time I was expecting to pay what they billed the insurance. $4200
I paid $286
The second time it was $4800
I paid $220
I know hospitals will lower bills for immediate cash payment, but also know the cash discount is nothing like this. It is usually between 20-50%, but never a 93-95% discount of charges. I'm finding this rather difficult to believe.
I can understand the OP not willing to pursue legal action against a family member.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MTAtech
Got the study? I am not however shocked that actual evidence contradicts the OP's anecdotal assertion.
I can't locate the Harvard study, I just remember the number for NJ as I was living there at the time (2009) and was just sooooooooooooooooooooooo thrilled to be in the winning state.
I just did a quick search using "uninsured billed more by hospitals" and there is no shortage of linked articles saying essentially the same thing.
Health Care providers make more money if they can get you to pay cash than by going through the insurance company.
My own experience was with a routine colonoscopy. The provider called me up three days before the procedure and told me that my insurance had declined to pay for the anesthetic but, not to worry, if I paid cash they would discount me 25%. I called up my insurance company (we are self insured but CIGNA manages it) and they assured me that it absolutely was covered, that they had not denied it and that preventative treatment was covered 100%.
Just a scam from the provider who can get more money by avoiding the insurance company.
I've never had any provider offer me a discount for cash. In fact, I have one doctor that my son uses 4 times a year. He is out of my plan and not a preferred provider so my portion is big bucks. But they will file for me and take the small portion that my insurance will pay and they bill me for the rest.
I specifically asked them if we could just circumvent the insurance and let me pay cash and maybe I would get some discount. They told me "NO WAY" that it was highly illegal for them to do this and that they had to charge every patient the same amount of money whether they had insurance or not. No matter what I did, my visit was going to be $700 period.
Maybe it's a state thing and other offices in other states can get away with this, but I've never had anyone do this for me.
There was a Harvard study a few years ago that found the uninsured were billed on average about 300% of what insurance companies were billed for the same hospital services. NJ uninsured were the 'winners' at 454%
Why would you get a discount for not going through the insurance company?
Huh.....I can think of at least two reasons. 1) immediate payment 2) less paperwork and hassle. Give me a little time and I can probably think of more.
Duh. The outrageous charges billed to insurance companies are to cover the costs of those of you who come in w/o insurance. My premiums go up because my insurance contributes to what the hospital writes off for your care. What my insurance excess doesn't cover, my taxes do. There is no free ride - other people are covering your azz. You can thank us at any time.
FYI - I paid my own way and what the doctor charged...I dont owe YOU crap!! Maybe you should get your eyes checked and your blood pressure too!
On two occasions, our insurance did not cover my daughters injuries, because they happened on someone else's property.
I ended up paying cash for the stitches and emergency room visit.
By paying cash, it was less than the deductible I was going to have to pay.
?????
If you have insurance, your treatment cost more? They get more of the pie than if you pay cash for treatment.
This is a well-known phenomenon. Hospitals may charge patients less if they pay in cash right away rather than use insurance - in other words, they price discriminate depending on their judgment of how deep the pockets of their counter-party are and how easily they can incentivize them for prompt payment...and it's perfectly legal. Whether or not that is a better deal for you also depends on your plan - it sounds like you have a high-deductible plan, in which case...yes, it could be cheaper for you out of pocket for this treatment.
Of course, if you get into more severe health trouble for any reason, there will quickly be the point where the health insurance will really be a better deal for you... even if the hospital takes 25% off of a $175K procedure, for most people that's still a bit too rich to pay out of pocket...
Also, keep in mind that if you do need that expensive procedure, you'll have made no progress through your deductible, so you'll obviously have to pay the high deductible out of pocket first before the insurance kicks in...
That's what a lot of people where I live do -- my insurance agent warned me to be very careful who my invited guests are -- so many people are lawsuit happy and don't bother to buy health insurance and often will not have their kids play in their own yards for that reason but shuffle them off to play in other peoples' yards so that if they get hurt they can expect that homeowner or his insurance to pay.
These kids will even invite themselves to come and play in your yard, jump on your kids' trampoline, climb in your trees, bring their roller skates to use on your property so you can pay if they get hurt.
Number 1 reason we need universal health care, right here. So we can't let kids go over to their friends' house for fear that they hurt themselves and the property owner doesn't have sufficient insurance?? No wonder we're all fat and lazy.
The OP has insurance. He's just giving an example where cash was the better choice.
I have insurance as well and have paid cash for doctor visits because going through the insurance would have been more of a hassle than it was worth.
Maybe people don't realize that you can still pay cash. They do charge differently when you don't use insurance.
Better choice? What choice? He hadn't meet his annual deductible yet, so it pretty much had to come out of pocket. Right?
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