In emergency situations, some of these questions won’t apply since there may not be time to shop around when it comes to lifesaving care. There are questions you can ask providers and pharmacists before you get a test, procedure, or prescription filled to ensure you’re not paying more than you need to. What to ask while you’re still at the hospital, doctor’s office, or pharmacy Knowing the right questions to ask can help patients reduce or even avoid huge medical bills. Unfortunately, the responsibility is solely on the patient or their guardian to advocate for themselves hospitals and medical providers will often not readily offer cost-reducing alternatives.
“You should never ever pay any medical bill right away,” says Caitlin Donovan, the senior director of the National Patient Advocate Foundation. While many patients may resign themselves to paying the bill, there are a bevy of other cost-cutting options to exhaust first. However, patients have tools and negotiating power to reduce these costs both before services are rendered and after they receive a bill. The expense of medical care, paired with a lack of transparency around how much these services will cost and why, can add to the shock and terror that comes with a medical bill. KFF surveys also show that excessive medical prices disproportionately affect those who are uninsured, Black and Hispanic adults, and people with lower incomes.
Among the 19 percent of American households that carried medical debt in 2017, the median amount owed was $2,000 per household, according to US Census Bureau data. These exorbitant costs are shouldered by patients, with about half of American adults reporting difficulties affording health care costs, according to Kaiser Family Foundation polling. From prescription drugs to knee replacements, the US outspends all other wealthy countries for nearly every procedure or medical service. The cost of medical care in the United States is notoriously steep.
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