<i>When we asked what the total cost would be, the quote was ~$1100. The total bills that came to us were well over three times that.</i><p>That sounds like an opportunity, no?  If I were a hospital, I&#x27;d start providing cost guarantees to my patients and their insurers.<p>In fact, some of that is already starting to happen with capitated payment systems.  Instead of paying for each procedure, a hospitals get a fixed amount per patient per year.  If they can keep costs low, they keep the difference.  If they can&#x27;t, they take a loss.<p>It&#x27;s important to remember a lot of healthcare providers are hamstrung by current regulations as well.  Even just to start a new hospital, you need to get a &quot;certificate of need&quot; from your state.<p>Healthcare is far from a free market in the US.