Different doctors salaries?

Healthcare and Medicine in the United States of America: Who are the middlemen and administrative functions that draw salaries from the money that we (or our insurance companies) pay our doctors and surgeons?

• I heard that the inflated prices at American hospitals are not just benefitting the doctors. There are insurance policies, billing agents, pricing agents and a whole administrative framework that makes the system work that needs to be paid for.

• Answer:

  Mr Tabouti is correct. There is limited availability to compare, and even less to "shop" for good healthcare and even that is limited (define a "good" service??). Additionally, most insurances are regulated at the state level, limiting the ability to "shop" for insurance across state lines. Insurance bundles care and prices (negotiated/contract pricing" ) thus 'no one pays retail' except the guy with no insurance-which no one in theory should pay since by law everyone must have insurance (of some sort-per ACA). Finally, administration costs (tracking, record keeping, logistics/supplies, monitoring) and overhead do cost hospitals and healthcare organizations plenty.  Because everyone knows the costs are inflated-everyone expects thier "fair share" of the loot. Driving the costs higher. Medicare/Medicaid via CMS limit the payments for procedures (via pricing by code ICD 10 now) and organizations are forced to "make up the difference" via higher charges to insured and uninsured persons outside of these programs. Those costs are passed to the consumer since insurance pays on a "co-pay" system (ie: we pay 80% of the inflated costs which probably just about covers the actual costs, and you pay 20% the inflation costs to us). The guy with no insurance is left to pay the whole costs out of packet which he cannot get a discount for because you can't hsve "differential" pricing. The One Payer system would have to cover these costs or cut payments (most likely the latter) but providers are not going to absorb those cuts and are leaving the system so care must by definition be rationed to provide a 'minimum' level of service to the most people. And this is not acceptable to the public who enjoy the idea that "everything" will be done for grandpa who's had his 3rd heart attack and is 80 but won't stop smoking... Because healthcare is a "RIGHT". Sorry this has been so long but I wanted to try to hit all the factors that affect the question you asked.