This is exactly the problem with medical "free money". When there's insurance, everyone pretends that you aren't paying for anything. $100 a pill? No problem, YOU only pay $5! A local doctor got arrested for making $1,000,000 a year by overcharging medicare. Of course he was a crook, but even the "honest" doctors fall into line. For example I had wax clogging one ear. Now I'm old enough to remember when in such an event you went to the family doctor, he picked it out and charged you maybe $10 and you went on your way. So I go to the phone book looking for ear, nose and throat doctors and what do I find? Not hundreds, only THREE listed and they are all part of the same conglomerate! I try to get an appointment and get a big computer run around. Finally I get scheduled but no, they can't pick the wax out. First they have run a bunch of tests on my hearing. I've got to come back in a couple of days for the actual picking! And then the doctor does pick the wax out in about a minute, but then discusses my "condition" which he asserts requires at least one more test. Which I dutifully schedule. Final outcome? Yeah there is some hearing loss but it's not surprising at my age and is probably due in part to other medication I'm taking which the ear doctor is NOT taking into account. but in the end pretty much nothing is done about any of it.
Bottom "free money" line? One ear wax gob removal: Cost over $1000. But hey don't worry. It's "free money"! I didn't "pay" for any of it... oh wait... or DID I?