You have no idea what you are talking about. My wife had this exact procedure done last year. The Doctor's office knew exactly what insurance we had, how much the co-pay was and what the coverage amounts were. And just like with the person in this news story, they decided to remove one tiny polyp (the scope is equipped with a device to do this), transforming this from a preventative procedure to a diagnostic one. The difference in cost out of our pocket was nearly $400. We understand the terms of our policy; we own our business, choose our insurance carrier and pay the full insurance premium for our family and all three of our employees, but there was no mention beforehand of the potential for additional fees for this procedure. Why is it that for healthcare we have to walk in and say "do whatever you want and send me the bill"?
And for the other folks implying that patients are wanting something for free: We pay over $3,000.00 per month to BCBS for health insurance, so we don't get much done "for free".
I am not suggesting that you’re asking for services for free. If you have Blue Cross, you’re paying through the nose. My sympathies, and you have every good wish for your wife’s health.
But I do know what I’m talking about here, on a professional basis. This is something I know a lot about. If your doctor knows the details of your particular policy, that’s really remarkable and you’re blessed. Most doctors (and I am talking about the DOCTOR, not her office staff) do not. Most doctors in private practice accept coverage by several different popular insurance carriers, and each of these carriers offers several different types of policies, depending on what arrangement has been negotiated with that particular group. Most doctors leave these details to their staff—the reimbursement specialists, coding and billing people, office manager, (or billing company if they contract the billing and collecting services out). The office staff can punch up your details on the computer instantly. The doctor very often doesn’t even know how to use your procedure codes to tap into his own staff’s software and get dollar amounts for you. If your doctor can, congratulations on having a really well-informed doctor. But usually this is the knowledge area of his or her employees and he or she doesn’t know the details.