Relentless Health Value

Everything I’m about to tell you is not a piece of cake. You’re up against the patriarchal medical system we enjoy in this country today, you’re fighting against paradigms, you’re fighting a system where no one except you, meaning consumers and patients and our employers, have any accountability, responsibility or ownership for the money we’re being asked to shell out. So no one but you, and me and all of us, can actually do anything about it.

When not hosting the show, Stacey is co-president of Aventria Health Group, a marketing agency and consultancy. Aventria specializes in helping pharmaceutical, employer, pharmacy, and health system clients improve patient outcomes by creating and leveraging collaborations with other health care organizations. For more than 20 years, Stacey has innovated better-coordinated health solutions benefiting all stakeholders, and, most of all, the patient.

00:00 Elisabeth Rosenthal, “An American Sickness: How Healthcare Became Big Business.”
02:25 Look at the bills your insurance company is paying.
02:45 “All of your out-of-pockets are a function of how much your insurance is paying on your behalf.”
03:20 “If no one is questioning what those costs are, then providers will fill in whatever they think they can get.”
04:05 Is your practice owned by a hospital, or licensed as a surgery center?
04:35 Ask your physician to only refer you to other physicians in your network.
05:00 Request that labs be in-network.
06:15 Ask in advance how much a procedure will cost.
07:30 “It’s up to us to inform our Physicians about costs.”
07:50 “How will this test or exam change my treatment?”
08:20 Ask which blood test or exam they’re taking and why.
09:00 “Where will this test or surgery be performed, and how does that place affect the price?”
10:00 “Who else will be involved in my treatment, and will I be getting a separate bill?”
11:25 “Watchful Waiting,” – the Value in waiting to seek treatment.
13:30 Price Transparency.
14:45 Fight back on Gag Clauses.