> It's probably different if you've already got an unpaid bill in front of you, especially for a larger procedure, and you're dealing with the billing skinjob rather than the receptionist. But that's still quite far from how sane transactions work.
Yes, that's what I'm referring to - negotiating down a bill, as opposed to negotiating the price up front. This also is far more likely to work for inpatient services than outpatient services, and for large bills (4 or 5 figures) than small ones. I just chose $100 as the base to keep the numbers simple.
The reason is that hospitals would rather have you pay a small bill than risk having you default on the bill. Accounting-wise, the former is preferable, especially since they don't actually expect uninsured patients to pay the massive sticker price anyway. (That's not meant for patients; it's meant for negotiating with insurers, and it's only an unintended side-effect that uninsured patients end up having to see it).
Yes, that's what I'm referring to - negotiating down a bill, as opposed to negotiating the price up front. This also is far more likely to work for inpatient services than outpatient services, and for large bills (4 or 5 figures) than small ones. I just chose $100 as the base to keep the numbers simple.
The reason is that hospitals would rather have you pay a small bill than risk having you default on the bill. Accounting-wise, the former is preferable, especially since they don't actually expect uninsured patients to pay the massive sticker price anyway. (That's not meant for patients; it's meant for negotiating with insurers, and it's only an unintended side-effect that uninsured patients end up having to see it).