How a $175 covid-19 test led to $2,479 in charges
These articles always leave out whether and how much the person actually ended up paying. Being an attorney, she should not have paid more than $175.<p>Medical providers get away with playing price roulette under the theory that when you show up and ask for help, they&#x27;re entitled to fair compensation for their services. Their billing department then goes to work manufacturing a bill that justifies &quot;costs&quot; much higher than they actually incur, and there is no specific way to refute them.<p>But in this case, she had a contract for those services at $175. The provider can&#x27;t just decide that they deserve more than their contracted rate and send her an additional bill. That would be like going to the grocery store, paying your total at the checkout, and then receiving a bill in the mail for the cashier&#x27;s time under a theory that you had only paid for the food.<p>Since the victim here is an attorney, writing a strongly worded letter repudiating the fraudulent bills should have come naturally. Did she do this? Did the provider then go to court and successfully substantiate their fraud, or what?<p>edit: I don&#x27;t know what the downvotes are for.<p>Reading the article again, I guess she ended up punting to insurance and so far has personally paid $0. Although her insurance states that she may have to pay &quot;up to $600&quot;, so the matter doesn&#x27;t seem over. These stories always lack so much agency, its frustrating.<p>The cost disease is a problem, and it seems none of the businesses involved have an incentive to reign it in. Apart from the future possibility of single payer, cash payers are currently one of the few checks on the market. But the dynamic is never fully explored - just because someone sends you a bill does not mean you have to pay it!