Need a Medical Procedure? You Have More Choices Than You Think!
Everyday thousands of patients in the U.S. use NewChoiceHealth.com to shop for a medical procedure. Whether they are insured or uninsured, whether they need a simple MRI or a more complex surgery – they are seeking help to better understand their options and to make an informed decision. Our conversations with these healthcare consumers and experience helping them shop for local providers continues to remind us how much confusion still exists, and that patients are often kept in the dark or misinformed.
To help you with your shopping experience, we boiled down the most common questions and misconceptions into this short introduction on Healthcare Consumerism. Whether you are new to healthcare consumerism, or if you have experience shopping for your healthcare needs – we hope you find NewChoiceHealth.com to be an informative guide to help you better navigate today’s healthcare market.
1. You Have a Choice
Before you have your next medical procedure, it’s important to remember that pricing varies greatly from facility to facility and you have a choice of where to have the procedure that no one may have told you about. It’s very common for patients to be referred to (or sent to) a specific doctor or facility, but without basic education on the other options available to them. As patients, it’s our responsibility to do our own research before we decide who will be performing our procedure and where.
While people are waking up to this fact, many still have questions and doubts. Everyday patients ask us questions like, “Do I still have choices:
- “if I am Insured” or “if I am Uninsured”
- “if my doctor has already referred me to a specific doctor / facility”
- “if I have already met with a specialists about the procedure”
- “if I have already scheduled the procedure”
In every one of these cases, a patient still has the opportunity to research and compare options, and make a decision that is right for them.
2. Prices Vary
One of the main reasons patients use NewChoiceHealth.com is for assistance in understanding how much a procedure may cost them. As anyone in the industry will tell you, calculating the cost of a medical procedure can be very difficult as there are many variables that contribute to the total cost.
What you won’t often hear however is that the largest factor that determines the cost of your procedure is your choice of medical facility. Study after study has shown that the exact same procedure, in the exact same town, with the exact same insurance can cost significantly more (2-10 times the amount) at one facility over another.
Plus, within the industry it’s generally accepted that the cost of a procedure is not necessarily related to the quality of the procedure. In simpler terms, higher cost does not mean higher quality. So, if you can save significantly and have an as-good or better experience, why would you not shop around?
3. You Can Save
Once you understand that you have options for where your procedure is performed and that the prices for each option can vary significantly, you’ll clearly see that You Can Save! As you begin the process of considering your options, visit NewChoiceHealth.com for a comparison of facilities in your area – helping you be a more informed consumer and helping you narrow in on options that can save you money!
For more information:
- See our 3 part Series on Healthcare Transparency
- See our Help Section / FAQ
Have more questions? Contact us at service@newchoicehealth.com
