Healthcare is not only negotiable, but it's the LAW that cash-paying patients only be charged the same amount that insurance/Medicare would pay. The prices that people see on a fee schedule, or when they get insurance paperwork, are the "list" prices. The amount that insurance/Medicare actually pay, are the real prices...and the same price that a cash-paying customer should pay.

Trouble is, unless you tell the doctor's office that you have noi insurance (if you don't), they will assume that you are just paying up-front, and going to be reimbursed by an insurance company- and will bill you for the total "list" price. This is why you mustn't say "I'm paying out of my pocket"- because they hear "I'm paying up-front, to be reimbursed by my insurance". You must say "I don't have insurance- am self-paying". And then make sure you get the insurance/medicare price...because many offices will try and cheat you and charge you "list" price- or, in many cases, the staff are ignorant of how to handle self-payers, and just bill for list.

I have a friend who had an MRI- the "list" price was $1300. As she was paying herself, and knew the score, she handled it properly, and got a bill for exactly what an insurance company would have actuially paid: $600.

I knew someone else who had an eye operation. Quoted $9K by the staff, who just looks at the list price....but he knew better, and talked to the doctor and they agreed before going in, that the bill would be $4K.

Everything is negotiable. I don't want to be a pig and try and get everything for nothing- I mean, I want people to be able to pay their overhead and make a profit and a living, as they deserve to....but I also want a good deal, and do want to be rewarded for paying cash and being responsible, and not have to subsidize dead-beats who don't pay their bills...nor do I want to subsidize people who pay with plastic, and thus cause the store to incur a 3-4% (or more) surcharge on everything they sell. (And ironically, in most places, it is illegal to pass the credit card surcharge onto customers who pay with credit cards....so we ALL get stuck paying the higher price that stores must charge to account for those who pay with CC's. But there's no law saying that cash customers can't negotiate a lower price.....