alexa:

I am somewhat suprised to see you on one of my threads.

My doctor is a sports doctor and he has treated all of my kids who have had minor sports injuries at one time or another. He has worked with me on muscular and skeletal issues also. He is big on non-medical cures (stretches, etc.) for issues of pain which is why I keep going back to him. This is a common theme for me and the cure typically works.

My "self" diagnosis and what I may have is secondary to the story I am trying to tell here. There has been a lot said about giving the common person the ability to discern for themselves what course of treatment to pursue given a pool of money such as the HSA. Since my insurance only covers the harsher injuries, I thought I might put into play some of the questions one might ask if pursuing a course of treatment. Getting tests done is certainly one of those times when one could ask the "How much?" question. I do not believe this is life threatening although I should know next week.

The doctor could not tell me how much the cost would be, no one in his office could tell me, and Billing said it would take a several days to find out. Billing openly admitted it was cheaper to get the Chest and Lower Abdomen Imaging, Urine Culture, and Blood Culture tests done offsite from U of M. Since I am in the position of having to conserve money and the doctor knows it, I ask the necessary questions and it is met gracefully. The larger picture does not bode well for people having to determine courses of action quickly minus the necessary information. So how does one decide?

The same as too big to fail banks, it appears the medical industry may have grown to big and unwieldly to handle requests for small bytes of information. We live every day life safe in the cocoon of ESI. I do believe my "how much?" request is an unusual one for medical practitioners, puts them on the spot, as most people would go to the company store lab to get the tests done. Without information be readily available, how does one control costs? I can see why doing nothing is desireable for healthcare and heathcare insurance industries over reform. No one knows what is going on today.

Thanks for your concern. I do not believe I am going anywhere yet. The fatigue certainly slows down my "wing chun do."