Bargaining with docs can get patients a lower fee

ABC News reports in a reported column on how to negotiate with your doctor or hospital for a lower fee and examines a poll by Harris Interactive that "found 61 percent of people who negotiated with a doctor were successful in getting a lower fee, but only 12 percent had ever tried. And many hospitals offer deep discounts too, as much as 10 to 50 percent off. … Well, turns out there are sites that tell you how much different medical procedures should cost too." Armed with this information, ABC notes that it can be easier "to approach the doctor or hospital" (Leamy, 9/14).

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This article was reprinted from khn.org with permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent news service, is a program of the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonpartisan health care policy research organization unaffiliated with Kaiser Permanente.