Being in a program like that is a method of getting discounts from the rack rate. I once had to come up with an accounting of medical bills in pursuing an adjustment of an auto insurance claim at which the other party was clearly at-fault. That’s when I saw that the doctor/clinic/etc. bills $X and the insurance company pays something like 30% of $X and the provider calls it square. It’s a big game.
Yep. It is also usually tied into what Medicare allows as reasonable and customary charges. Insurance companies may not follow that rate of reimbursement exactly but they do use it as a guide. Medicare is one reason too why physicians can not adjust charges for certain patients to make the bill more affordable.
It is all a big scam. My big question on medical costs has always been, “How can health care be made affordable when nobody can really tell us the true cost?”