Interesting Study About Doctor’s Charges

A recent study came up with a staggering conclusion, nearly three-fourths of U.S. consumers said they know little to nothing about how the fees of their doctors compared to other physicians in a similar practice.

Furthermore the study concluded the most Americans actually underestimate what their providers charge. For example, most adults (65 percent) think that, in general, a high-priced doctor in the U.S. charges two or three times as much for the same procedure as a low-priced doctor. In fact, a review of HealthMarkets data for several selected procedures shows that some doctors charge nearly 10 times what others charge for the same procedure.

Additional information gained in the survey showed that over half of those surveyed said that health insurance was not affordable and almost one in ten respondents stated they had fallen behind meeting other financial obligations for necessities such as housing and utilities in order to pay for health insurance.

Nearly 25% of respondents said they had skipped a doctor visit for a check up or waited until a medical problem got worse before they scheduled a visit with a doctor as the amount they would have to pay is too high. Additionally over one third of self employed individuals stated they delayed doctors visits because out of pocket costs were too high.

To see the results of this survey, click on the “The Price Is Wrong” at http://healthmarkets.com/home/media/press–releases/2006–Press–Releases

View all Articles by: Melissa Clark, CCS-P