My husband partially chopped off his finger. Long story short, he received a hospital bill of some atrocious amount. We went to the hospital, spoke to a woman in billing (I think she was a manager), and it was reduced. It went from something like $18,000 to $1,800. The results of the procedure were terrible, so there was that.
All in all, no muss, no fuss. She was the person that taught me that hospitals charge whatever they think they can get away with. I asked her what the charge would be for someone coming in for gallbladder surgery. She said there was no way anyone at the hospital could quote a price. I asked if there was a ballpark figure. She said no. Basically when going to the hospital it’s like handing them a blank check if you’re paying cash.
I’m sure you can get the price knocked way down. What these medical providers are doing to cash customers is wrong wrong wrong.
No one in the history of the world has ever done gall bladder surgery, so how could they POSSIBLY know what to charge? 
Just like auto mechanics and auto dealerships used to pretend that no one had EVER done "that procedure" to a car before, so they couldn't give you a quote - until lawmakers "got their minds right".
Health care and lawyers are gonna get automated one of these days, too - and they're NOT going to like it a bit.
agree!! Hope hubbys doin okay!!
My dad had a warped finger from a bad break and heal and when he pointed at us, we would move to the left a little. he’d stop mid sentence and say... What the he** are you doing? I’d answer... getting in line with your finger... he’d just bust up laughing... that was the end of the lecture! lol...