"Nova" wrote in message
...
Leon wrote:
"Nova" wrote in message
Agreed and these guys are probably makin more off of the procedure than
those having to collect from an insurance company. Remember insurance
companines get deep deep discounts and often don't pay.

It sound to me like the insurance companies are keeping the cost down.


Would you use an insurance company to hep you buy electricity, groceries,
clothing? They don't keep costs down, often they perpetuate the problem.

Think of it as a co-op paying wholesale rather than retail.


That is exactly how I think of it. The insurance company is paying
wholesale to the doctor, I pay way above retail for that insurance.

Basically HMO's and insurance companies are more like agents for many
doctors. I think I would probably have more faith in a doctor that
does not rely on an insurance company to bring in it's patients.


The insurance companies rely on their participating doctors list to bring
in the customers.


I have never heard of any one including myself choosing an insurance
company based on its doctors list. Most employees insurance is provided
through their employeer. The employeer decides which insurance company
to go with and you choose from the list of doctors.

The company I work for last year offered three different plans.

The first plan was their "Basic Medical Plan". The company paid 100% of
the premium. You had to designate a primary physician and the only way
you could see a different doctor was through a referral by the primary.
There was a $25 co-payment per office visit and very few doctors in my
area accepted the plan. None of the doctors we've used for years accepted
the plan.

The second offering was an HMO where I paid a small portion of the premium
and all medical treatment had to be done by the single designated
facility. The office was about 20 miles from my home and I'd never heard
of any of the doctors on the staff.

The third plan required me to pay a much higher portion of the monthly
premium. The out of pocket premium would cost me about $80 per month for
myself and my wife. Any doctor I looked for in the list of participating
doctors accepted the plan. I did not have to designate a primary
physician and could see any doctor of my choice at any time. Office visits
had a $10 co-payment.

I chose the third plan.

And your share is a drop in the bucket compared to what the company cost
was. My wife works for the state of Texas and they get very favorable
rates, her insurance is similar to the one you chose and her share of the
premium is $0. For myself and our son our share of the premium is 1/2,
$380 per month.
Several years ago the average expense for a company was around $900 per
month to cover an employee with insurance.