Getting a Cash Discount for Health Care
September 30, 2009 by Miranda Marquit
Filed under Finance
In a time when you might be squeezed for cash, paying out the nose for health care can be a depressing. This is especially true if you are looking for things like dental and vision, that are not usually included in most health insurance plans. This is coverage that you may have to purchase separately, and that can be expensive. The good news is that you might be able to get a cash discount.
Asking for a cash discount
My dentist offers a 10% discount if you pay cash at the time you make an appointment. In many cases, the charge for services for the non-insured are lower anyway, since the health care provider does not have to mess with the paperwork and other requirements of health insurance companies. I can also get a 10% cash discount from my eye doctor on my yearly exam and on my contacts when I pay cash.
This might also work at your doctor’s office. A friend’s doctor charges non-insured patients a reasonably low rate — 70% of what he charges insured customers. (On another note, I wonder if part of the reason health care costs so much is because the entire insurance system is set up to add costs.) On top of that, if patients pay cash, the doctor will knock off another 10%, because of the fees avoided from the card processors that charge for credit and debit.
It is possible to look around and see what is offered. Many health care providers understand that things are tight, and that the current system is becoming too costly for many people — even for those with health insurance. Some health care providers will even help you set up a payment plan with no interest if you are on course to pay it off within six months, and low interest if you can do it within a year.
In the end, it’s up to you to shop around and see if you can find health care providers willing to work with you and help you better afford the health care that you need.
Image source: U.S. Navy via Wikimedia Commons
These primary care physicians charge $50 per month for unlimited care.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/07/health/07health.html?_r=1&src=tp
Now you’re onto something that makes sense in the healthcare debate…… this is real competition (not the phony government stuff) and the way to drive costs down. Already groups like the no insurance club (http://www.noinsuranceclub.com/) offer a set number of visits and procedures by contract, and hospitals such as the Surgery Center of Oklahoma offer deeply-discounted surgery, payable in advance in cash or cashier’s check.
From their FAQ of the Surgery Center of Oklahoma:
To keep our prices as low as possible, cashier’s checks or cash are the methods preferred. Credit cards and personal checks cannot be accepted. Human resource departments or divisions of self-insured companies can make other arrangements if necessary.
Payment in full is required at the time service is rendered. No payment arrangements can be made. These deeply-discounted prices are otherwise not available.
Sounds kinda old fashioned but it works.