I have a preferred doctor who doesnt have an xray machine. Obviously getting an xray image is the first step before even talking to the doctor. An xray of your hand is a _very_ basic procedure. My plan was to get my own image from a conveniently close facility of my choice and bring it to the doctor.
This is an open commercial market right? I decided to play a quick game with this and ask all my in-network local providers what their charge would be for just an x-ray of my left hand.
A car mechanic should be able to quickly give you an up-front estimate for common procedures, why not an imaging facility?
If youve read this far youre probably not surprised I called 4 different facilities, followed up with a series of requests over multiple days and failed to receive even one straight answer except "come in and we will see what we can do".
It makes me realize how soul-crushing the experience can be in this so-called "open market" to find the best possible treatment when you have a more complicated problem. The amount of leg-work, scheduling, waiting for doctors and getting opinions all while in pain would break the spirit of most anyone.
Is it really that much simpler in other countries to connect with the proper provider? I was under the impression countries like canada handle simple problems like mine much more gracefully but serious issues remain problematic.